Three is a Crowd
by Nals
Summary: It's boring in Radiator Springs. Lightning pitches in when he has to. Sally works as motel manager and as an attorney. Marlene comes over when she can. Visitors come and go. That's all the excitement there is these days. But when a known outside party visits, love stories are hotter, and it's not just in bed. May contain suggestions.
1. Chapter 1

_To my fans, this is to fix what problem that's been tugging at my brain for days. xD_

* * *

_**Three is a Crowd  
**__**Chapter One/Prologue**_

"Stickers?"

"Yeah?"

"Marlene's coming over tomorrow for your interview."

Radiator Springs' youngest couple were nestled into the couch of their so-called home, located on the second floor of Lightning McQueen's HQ. The first floor occupied most of Lightning's workspace and displays. It was nighttime, just after ten in the evening, and the two had gone home to rest.

"Yeah," the racer said, pressing his face to Sally Carrera's hair. "What about?"

The town lawyer, owner of Cozy Cone Motel and co-owner of Wheel Well Motel sighed. "Nothing."

"Are you jealous I might reveal secrets to her?" he put in slightly.

"No," she replied.

"Still jealous I might do something with her?" he put in.

"No," she replied in a much flatter tone.

Ever since Lightning spent his days with a special journalist, who was his best friend-girl from his childhood years, Sally had been slightly jealous when she visits the town on mini-vacations. But this time, Marlene had scheduled a two-week stay at the Cozy Cone, reserving Room 11 for a few days now.

"Well, there's nothing about her that will make my heart leave you," he told her, and he pressed his lips to hers.

* * *

The next morning, an unusual sight for visitors, but a very common one for the residents, had arrived: a typically rare dark silver Audi R8. There wasn't many at the time, and it was quite rare to see in the US.

The second all-wheel drive sports car to be bestowed to the world by Audi, the first being the TT, turned to park into the private garage reserved for invited friends and for private purposes. Lightning and Sally went out to greet their friend, and they exchanged hugs and kisses respectively.

"Hey guys," Marlene called. "Thanks so much for doing this again, Lightning."

"No problem, 'Lene," he replied, patting her back. "Did you want me to get your stuff for you?"

"I'm not helpless, _amico mio_," she replied as she snatched up her laptop bag and her suitcases from the front of the R8. "But you can have the laptop bag."

He took the shoulder bag from her, and she and the couple walked back to the motel. "So, what did I do now to deserve such a welcoming committee?" she asked.

"Nothing, just…wanted to welcome you, that's all," Sally replied. "Can't I do that?"

"Ehh…you usually have work to do," Marlene put in.

"Is that a compliment or what?"

"Nothing; just sayin'," Marlene replied.

Sally handed the key to Marlene's room. "Room Eleven."

"Thanks Sally; I really appreciate this." She kissed her friend's cheeks enthusiastically.

Sally only chuckled. "Yeah, your'e welcome," she replied, and pat the journalist on the back. "Why don't you get settled before having breakfast?"

"Oh, good, thanks," she replied. "I'll take that," she told Lightning, "and you can enjoy the morning with her."

"Oh, I can—" But a glare from her silenced the racer. "Alright."

Marlene smiled at both of them, and waved good-by as she headed for the elevators.

"At least she was gracious," Sally commented, hugging Lightning's arm tightly.

"She always has been," he replied, kissing her hair.

It was roughly ten minutes when Marlene dropped by Flo's. She found sally and Lightning in a secluded corner. She moved to them and asked if she could stay.

"'Lene?" Lightning asked.

"Yes?"

"Ever heard of 'three is a crowd'?" he asked sweetly.

"Ah, ohhh." She smiled sheepishly. "Sorry." She moved away to the counter.

"Crap," Sally hissed.

"What?"

"I hate it when people do that," she growled.

"Well, we're alone now," Lightning snarled, soft and sexy.

She giggled. "Oh, you~"

* * *

"Alright, that's a wrap," Marlene said, and she capped her pen. "Thanks for this, Lightning."

"Anytime," he replied, and they left the hotel room for a much-needed break.

It was just a few days after Marlene had arrived. The plan was to first settle, then get down to business.

"So, how did it go?" Sally called.

"Tiring," Lightning said as he plopped into the seat beside her on the couch, his arm coming around Sally. He and Marlene had split on their way out of the lobby.

Sally grinned. "Nothing happened?"

_"Nothing happened_," he reassured her smilingly, and she pressed her lips to his.

"I love you," Sally said as she snuggled against his warmth.

He pulled her closer. "I love you too," he whispered, and feverishly pressed his lips back to hers.

The phone rang suddenly, and Lightning groaned as Sally pulled away from him. Half-dazed, she answered the phone.

"Hello?" she spoke.

Lightning only sat back, watching as he dreamed of the heinous things they could do tonight. He listened mildly.

"Yes, this is Sally…Francesco?"

The name struck Lightning flat in the face. Why was Francesco calling, and why to Lightning's home?

"Oh. Angel wasn't too happy, was she?" She chuckled. "No, I think the room is available. …I'll tell her now. …'Bye." She pressed on the close-call button, and dialed again.

"Why was _he_ calling?" Lightning asked grumpily.

"He claims he wants to visit," she said, and Angel, the receptionist at the Cozy Cone, picked up. "Hey, Angel? I heard you spoke with Francesco. …No, I don't care about that. I just called to tell you he wants to reserve Room 12. …yeah, right in front of Marlene's. That's right. Well, someone could ask for it before we know it!" she called. "Sorry. Alright, thanks. 'Bye." She closed the call again, and put down the phone. "So, where were we?" she said as she slumped back onto the couch, and smiled at him.

"I think we stopped right around here," he murmured, and he pressed his lips to hers once more.

* * *

_I know it's short, but it's what I could come up with, hehe~ xD_


	2. Chapter 2

_Another request, I guess. xD Thanks to __**anon**__ and __**MereMcQueen314**__ and __**Pancake3298**__(I don't remember if Pancake requested that), and of course to __**MissCarrera**__ for some reference and inspiration! xD_

_I know I put Marlene in here and all that, but whatever on that. xD Erm…guess where this story lies in the Stevenson timeline and put it in a reviews?_

* * *

_**Chapter Two**_

To the regulars, it was a version of Starbucks'. To newcomers and visitors, it was a rest stop. At any rate, Flo's V8 Café is where workaholics go for coffee and people go for comfort food. Today, a Miss Stevenson was working on her laptop, having two universal serial buses plugged in with a mug of caffeine to the side.

"Hello," someone crooned, and arms encircled her shoulders.

"Yeah?" she mused, scrolling through her article.

"What's that?" her friend asked.

"It's your interview," she replied, typing. "Thanks for that."

"Anytime," he told her.

There was a pause as she typed, until he spoke.

"Why don't you get out for once? You know, socialize?"

"Lightning, I have to finish this," she told him, and glanced sideways. "You know Mr. Earlwood." She turned back to her work. "Go and play with Mater."

Unfortunately, Lightning McQueen is quite persistent with her. "No, I wanna stay with her," he squeaked, and sat beside her in the booth.

She took a sip of her coffee. "What do you want?" she asked.

"Nothing," he replied, his head leaning on her shoulder.

"Where's Sally?" she offered for conversation.

"Working on a case herself," he replied.

"And Mater?"

"Fixing a wreck with Ramone."

"And Mack?"

"Sleeping."

"So that leaves me?"

"Yup."

She pushed at the bridge of her glasses, bringing the lenses closer to her eyes. "Hmmm."

"What's wrong?"

She deleted a bit off the intro, replacing it with something better. "Never mind."

He smiled. "Still independent?"

"You know me," she replied as she sipped her coffee.

"Yeah, I still do." he watched her work, inputting other opinions and elaborations into the points of the interview.

Until she was finished. A total of three hours had elapsed. It was around four-thirty in the afternoon, and finally, Marlene slumped back onto the couch's backrest.

"Whew!" she sighed in relief. She turned to her friend, and her smile faded. He'd dozed off on the back-rest, his jaw slack.

She nudged him awake as she shut down her laptop. She fixed her papers, cords and serial buses as he struggled to wake. He'd gotten the fuzz out of his vision just as she finished stuffing everything but the coffee into her bag.

"So, what did you want to do today?" Marlene asked him.

"I dunno," he replied. "I was thinking more of a…quiet dinner."

Her eyes bulged. "Won't Sally mind?"

"No; we talked about it already, remember?" He stared at her. "You and I are friends. Just a dinner date. Nothing else."

She stared back at him. "No hooking up?"

"Ew, no!" he called, and she laughed.

"When do you think you and Sally'll tie the knot? It's been a few years."

He looked away. "I'm not sure," he replied. "We're just so busy these days 'sometimes' becomes 'most of the time' when it comes to getting a word in edgewise. I mean, races, cases, the motel and headquarters are enough."

She nods. "I know how you feel."

She nodded in agreement. "So, how about it? Wheel well?"

"I don't have anything to wear, Lightning," she told him flatly. "You know I don't pack dresses. At best I have a formal shirt."

"Just go in that, then," he replied, chuckling. "It's not like you're trying to impress me."

She nodded, pursing her lips. "Time?"

"Seven-thirty?"

"Sure."

He grinned. "That gives you three hours."

She nudged him playfully, and he laughed heartily. Picking up her shoulder bag she stood to retreat to the motel, talking with Lightning on the way there.

* * *

That evening, Marlene and Lightning were seated in a secluded corner of Wheel Well's new restaurant. Rich sax and percussion that denoted a happy jazz song rang gently out of the speakers, soft enough for conversation, but loud enough to be heard.

Marlene wore a dark gray blouse that resembled the dark gray of her beloved R8, the sleeves covering three-fourths of her arms, with black pants and her usual black canvas shoes. Around her neck was an intricate ring of small white pearls. Lightning, on the other hand, sported a formal, deep red button-up with a golden collar, as well as golden cuffs and hemline of the bottom cut of the shirt. He also wore a pari of straight black pants, and casual canvas shoes, too. They weren't formal or inform, but not stupidly casual either.

The mood wasn't awkward, but it wasn't too comfortable, either. It had been years since both the journalist and the racer had gone out for dinner together. Because when they talked, it was usually over coffee or hot chocolate with others.

"So, how's the championship going? I've had so much work lately I've not seen a bit of news," she asked, popping a leaf into her mouth.

From the dish set between them, Lightning speared a crouton with his fork. "Doing well as usual."

She chuckled. "Does winning get boring after a while?" she teased.

He smiled at her. "Yeah, it does," he replied sarcastically, and they laughed.

"I hear you've got a double interview this month," he said. "Or is it next month?"

"Next month," she told him, affirmation in her voice.

"Who's the other one?"

"You know Jeff, right?" she smirked at him.

He smiled. "Jeff Gorvette?"

She nodded. "He agreed to share his secrets to _Cars Today_," she informed.

"Really?"

"M-hm."

There was a moment of silence between them as Lightning formulated a question. "I don't want to intrude or offend or anything," he said, and she looked at him calmly, "but you and Jeff…?"

She shook her head, looking away as she flushed. "I know you're trying to help Lightning, but Jeff isn't really my type."

He snickered. "You have a type?"

She kicked him lightly, touching her foot to his, and he jerked, laughing. She couldn't help but smile, too.

"I mean, Jeff's nice and funny and awesome to be with, but…he's just a friend."

"'Just' a friend?" he said, smirking at her.

"Yeah, I mean, whatever on that," she stammered, chuckling.

"Admit it, you like him," he teased, nudging her. "Admit it," he encouraged, and she snickered, head bent as she tried to hide her blush. "Come on," he goaded grinningly.

"Alright, alright," she said, uncomfortable but happy. "Maybe Jeff is cute," she murmured, and he laughed aloud.

She kicked him again as she continued to eat. "Shut up."

"Sooo, did anything happen?"

"Well, we had dinner," she offered.

"Did he…tell you anything?"

"Well, he told me a few more things," she said, "you know, out of the interview."

His eyes widened as he leaned forward. She rolled her eyes, and he snickered as he leaned back. "At any rate, what happened?"

"We had dinner, and, well, we had dinner. End of story."

"Marlene, you and I know you shed details when we talk," Lightning told her flatly.

She sighed, waiting a few moments as she poked through their salad. "Maybe he did drive me home," she told him. "Maybe he is sweet." She popped a leaf into her mouth. "Maybe we did kiss."

His eyes widened. "Really?"

She blushed. "Maybe," she said casually.

"Wow."

"Yeah," she said wistfully. "Wow." She sipped at her shake.

He sighed. "I know what you mean." She nodded in agreement.

"But he's not what I'm looking for," she told him. "I mean, he might be a racer and all that, but he's not what I'm looking for."

He cocked his head to the side. "How come?"

"I don't know," she replied. "He's blond, I guess."

"And does that have anything to do with me?"

"No," she replied immediately. "Well, maybe."

"Still hurts?"

She nods. "Sorry."

"I can't blame you." He sighed. There was a bout of awkward silence, until he spoke. "I know a few guys from the World Grand Prix and from the Dinoco 400," he put in. "Maybe I could, you know, hook you up, and…you can go on a date."

She shook her head. "No thanks," she replied.

Just as the main course to be shared was set in front of them, his phone rang, and they found Mia had texted him. His eyes widened.

"Don't tell me you didn't tell her," Marlene growled, glaring at him.

"It's not that," he said, freaked out. "Someone has announced his visit to Radiator Springs."

"Who?"

"Francesco Bernoulli."

* * *

_Erm...review for dating Jeff? xD Yes, I had to put that in to extend the chapter. And maybe to let you guys know Marlene was still looking for someone at this point. If you guys haven't read at least **My Best Friend **yet, then please do so. :) **Italian Love **isn't really required. ;3_


	3. Chapter 3

_To __**Mere**__: Thanks for making a point there; I'll have it edited real quick~_

_To __**Mere **__and __**anon**__, as well as all my other readers who think the same thing: The first chapter is just __**introductory**__, as is this one. Why, you ask, have I put Marlene and Francesco in the spotlight? Well, here's my point:_

_I read somewhere that you gotta introduce just about everything at the start, or everyone else will wonder, 'Now, where did _that_ come from?' If you watch Sherlock Holmes with Robert Downey, Jr., you'll notice that everything that has got to do with the bigger, even latter, picture was, at one point, shown to you. So, I introduced Marlene into the picture because she's a part of the big picture. Well, Francesco is, too. So, just like in Sherlock Holmes, there are parts I can and will be referring to in these chapters that will and can lead to the big picture._

_**SPOILER ALERT: **__The story is named __**Three is a Crowd**__ because Marlene and Francesco aren't supposed to, you know, be there, Francesco being the one with more, say, momentum to 'wreck' Lightning and Sally's relationship, because of the saying _"Three is a crowd."_ :)_

* * *

_**Chapter Three**_

Dinner went by with Lightning talking about Italy's Francesco Bernoulli. He claimed that the undeniably handsome Formula driver was arrogant in his ways, as well as loud, obnoxious, and full of himself. Yet, Lightning couldn't deny Francesco was a rest friend at times, even if those times were very rare.

To Marlene, Francesco sounded quite bad, and made a mental note on avoiding the Italian altogether. But she couldn't help teasing.

"'Undeniably handsome'?"

"When you've seen how many fans he has, ugh," he groaned, and she chuckled.

"You're not gay, are you?"

He glared at her. "No," he called, and she chuckled again.

"Just teasing," she told him.

They drove back to Radiator Springs in her dark silver Audi R8 GT, and Lightning pretty much hurried to reach his headquarters. He parked in the large, private garage next to the motel, and got out hastily, closing Marlene's beloved R8's driver's side door gently. They headed for the motel lobby, where Sally was waiting.

"Sally," Lightning called as he strode over, crossing the length of the hall to the reception in just five long and quite excited strides. He pressed his lips to hers as Miss Carrera turned to face him.

Marlene stood there awkwardly as they kissed, and she scratched the back of her head, shifting her weight uncomfortably. She rocked back and forth on her feet, biting her lip as she looked away.

Not that she minded, because it was extremely fine for her best friend-boy to date Sally Carrera, a beautiful, witty and smart lawyer that owned a pristine blue 2002 Porsche 911 Carrera, as well as the Cozy Cone Motel and was co-owner of Wheel Well Motel alongside boyfriend Lightning McQueen. But it was just that she was jealous her best friend-boy had someone to look forward to when he got home, someone to comfort him in the night, someone to look after when she's afraid of the dark. It wasn't that Sally was there; it was what both Lightning and Sally had that bugged Marlene.

They don't hear the automatic glass door slide as it opened and closed.

"Lightning McQueen!" a voice boomed, startling the trio.

The couple glanced sideways, effectively breaking the kiss. Marlene was even more so, and yelped slightly as she clutched her shirt on a spot just over her heart. She glared at the newcomer, and rolled her eyes away dismissively as the man glanced at her. She strode away, murmuring her excuse to Lightning before heading for the desk to discuss arrangements.

"Francesco," Lightning called, awkwardly releasing Sally. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, just visiting," Francesco replied as he strode forward. He took Sally's hand, and pressed his lips gently to the back of her hand as he bowed slightly. "_Buona sera, Signorina _Sally." He smiled up at her.

Sally blushed thickly as her celebrity crush stared at her, milky brown eyes glancing up from under long black lashes as his head was bent slightly. He smirked as he caught her blush, and straightened.

Francesco turned to Lightning then, who was fuming with jealousy.

"What are you doing here, Francesco?" Lightning repeated calmly. "Italy getting too boring for you?"

"Not really; Francesco just wanted to see old friends." He grinned at Lightning. "And besides, Francesco just wanted to see what a home Lightning McQueen has here in America."

"For how long?"

"Oh, a week or so," Francesco replied, his arms now crossed over his chest and leaning back on one foot. "Francesco does no know exactly."

Marlene popped out suddenly at Lightning's side. "Is Luigi still open?" she asked her friend.

"I don't know. What time is it?"

"Erm.." she glanced at her silver watch. "Eight…eight-forty-seven," she said after a moment, unsure. "Dammit, I need my glasses." She produced her glasses from her pants pocket and glanced back. "Yeah, eight-forty-seven."

"Get contacts," Lightning snorted. "I suppose. Why?"

"I…told Guido earlier I'd have her tires checked," she said, putting away the added apparel.

"McQueen, won't you introduce your friend?" Francesco put in.

Lightning rolled his eyes. "'Lene, Francesco," he said. "Francesco, Marlene."

"Yeah, hi," she told him quickly and unglancingly.

"That was rude," Francesco scoffed, rolling his eyes.

She sighed in exasperation as she turned to face the Italian. "Yeah, well, I-whoa," she stopped mid-speech as she faced him. Her eyes were wide, almost scrutinizing than actually awed, and leaned over to Lightning to whisper, gaze not deviating from Francesco's, "Tell me again what term you used."

"Undeniably handsome?" he offered, staring at Francesco.

"And I thought that wasn't true," she replied quietly, and he smacked her on the upper arm. She laughed, and tried shielding herself with her arms as he pretended to get mad at her.

"Yeah, well, I have to go and see if Guido is still up; I have tires to check," she said. "Woulda been easier with Margo around, but she's not, so whatever," she added as she walked.

But she hadn't really failed to notice Sally standing like a complete idiot there. She waved her hand across the green-eyed beauty, but no reaction. Marlene looked at Lightning, who rolled his eyes. She snickered, and he tried hitting her playfully. She skittered away, trying to avoid his slaps, her laughter echoing off the walls as she left.

Lightning shook his head. "My best friend, what are you going to do?" he muttered, half to himself. He faced Francesco again. "So?"

"So, where does Francesco stay?" the Italian put in.

"Sal?" Lightning nudged his girlfriend, and she snapped back to reality. "Where's Francesco going to stay?"

"Oh, er…do pick a room," Sally said as she led Francesco to the reception desk.

Lightning left the two to discuss arrangements, and headed for the garage. There he found Marlene talking with Guido.

"_…still fine_," Guido said in his usual unintelligible Italian tongue.

"_Si,_" Marlene returned, and kissed Guido casually on the cheek. "_Molte grazie, _Guido," she told him, and the young mechanic blushed heavily as he passed Lightning.

"What did you say?" Lightning asked.

"_Molte grazie _means 'thanks so much' in Italian," she told him. "Now, is there anything else you'd want for the night?"

"How about a good night kiss?" he asked, smiling at her.

"Won't Sally mind?"

"On the cheek," he chided.

"Oh." She chuckled, embarrassed. "In that case," she continued, and tilted her head to press her lips to his cheek. She smiled into his blue eyes as she took his hands in hers. "I had a wonderful dinner," she told him softly.

He grinned. "Dinners are my specialty."

She grinned back and hugged her friend. With a squeeze of reply from Lightning she pulled away, and headed for the motel. He smiled as he looked on, happy he and his first love were still good.

* * *

He returned to his headquarters not far from the motel, and after a bath and an episode of _The Big Bang Theory_ Sally came in, looking exhausted. He glanced at the clock. Ten-thirty in the evening.

"Care to tell me why you're late," he asked her.

"Motel papers," she said. "Managing Wheel Well and the Cozy Cone together is frustrating."

He smiled as he turned off the TV and stood to pull her into a hug from behind. "Need help?" he murmured, lips to her ear.

"Naw, I'll be fine," she replied.

He kissed her cheek before letting her settle down. He slipped under the covers of the king-sized bed, and lay on his side, facing the wall opposite the spot on the bed beside him.

Before, Sally would sleep either in a room of the Cozy Cone or in the lobby of the motel itself, clothes stashed elsewhere. Breakfast at Flo's, bath in the motel, work in the lobby. Until Lightning's HQ was set up, that is. She'd accepted when he offered her a spot beside him at night, and they'd been sleeping that way since.

She doused the lights as she finished brushing out her brown hair, and she, too, slipped under the covers on the free spot. Lightning scooted to her side.

"You alright?" he asked softly. "You've been so busy lately."

"I am, and I know," she replied, turning in his arms. "Sorry."

"Don't say sorry for having to work harder than me," he told her. "But then, I can help with the papers, if you wanted me to."

"Oh, you wouldn't be able to get how to do it," she teased smilingly.

"Oh yeah? I bet you wouldn't get the hang of being in a racing team," he shot back with a gleam of amusement in his eyes.

Both argued over things playfully, but soon they were exhausted as the weight of the day had taken its toll on Sally.

"I love you," he told her, pulling her close.

His breath was sweet and warm as it washed over her face, and sent tingles along her skin. She sighed softy. "I love you too," she replied, pecking his lips.

"Did you want to do anything tonight?" he asked after a moment. Not that he wanted or didn't want to, but it's been a long time since both shared something further than a quick kiss.

"I'm too tired to do anything," she replied. "Unless you'd like to do it yourself."

"You won't leave me to do _all_ the work, would you?"

She smirked at him playfully. "Maybe not," she said, and he pressed his lips to hers fiercely.

* * *

_Alright, I really have to leave it at that because I don't' want to get ahead of myself. *smirk* At any rate, please, please, __**please**__ read the next chapter after reviewing! D8_


	4. Chapter 4

_Sorry for the late, __**Pancake**__; didn't see you there for a while. xD For any of you that have been asking, no this is not connected to the Stevenson saga timeline in __**any way**, as you may have noticed. x3__ To refer to the timeline, please see my profile description for it. :)_

_I wanted more filler, but I thought you guys just wanted me to start. xD_

_More than twice the number of reviews than the chapters in a story! D8 Awesooome~_

_Review for two chaps in one day? xD_

* * *

_**Chapter Four**_

They were alone in a booth at Flo's early that next morning. Marlene was surfing quietly in the neighboring booth, ears plugged with her favorite white Sennheizer headset. The trio were having a breakfast of pancakes and coffee at seven in the morn. Sunlight filtered through the recently washed windows at the east, west if you face the café doors.

Lightning and Sally were huddled together, his arm around her as she leaned against him quietly. Both were happy and in love.

Sally had decided she'd take care of the papers later, after she had a quiet, relaxing breakfast with her boyfriend. Not that she was to ignore that she had work to do and a case to finish, but she couldn't neglect Lightning, either, and her relationship with him. Only now she had noticed in the three busy months that she'd been missing him and his love.

Sally sighed happily, pressing her face to his shoulder, and closed her eyes. Lightning recognized the soft and long exhale, and pressed his lips to her dark hair. Her hands claimed his free hand, and mindlessly played with his fingers. He chuckled slightly as both watched their hands in childish but ecstatic amazement.

"_Buon giorno, _Lightning McQueen!" a voice boomed as usual.

Lightning didn't have to look up to see Francesco there. Sally, on the other hand, was startled out of her skin, and jumped, looking into smiling brown eyes, which startled her to silence as usual.

"What brings you here, and in an early morning, Francesco?" Lightning half-growled, almost-glaring at the table before he looked up to the Italian.

"Nothing," Francesco replied, and settled down in the seat in front of the couple. "Just wanted to see you up."

"Francesco, have you ever…heard…of privacy?" Lightning asked calmly, narrowing his eyes slightly, voice laced with veiled fury.

"You know I have," Francesco put in.

"Then why are you sitting there in front of me and my girlfriend?"

"Why, I just wanted to talk to an old friend," Francesco said, and glanced up and away casually. "This is a nice place," he put in.

"Yes, you can pay your compliments to the owner herself," Lightning part-snarled.

Francesco's head snapped back to face them. "Oh, _Signorina_ Sally owns this restaurant, too?" He grinned as he stared at Sally. "Congratulations."

"No, she doesn't," Lightning told him. "Just…just…" He sighed exasperatedly. He knew firsthand how Francesco can act if you got on his bad side. "Francesco, I am trying to enjoy the morning here, and so are other people," he put in nicely. "Why don't you run along and find someone else to bug before a scene starts?"

"Oh no, I wouldn't make out with you, if anything," Francesco said bluntly, and was that a smirk on his face? "I just wanted to talk."

"Well, we can talk later, if you want," Lightning hissed.

"There's hardly anything for me to do!" Francesco argued. "Almost everyone else is still sleeping."

"I don't care, so long as you'll have to leave me to enjoy the morning." Lightning's voice was soft and menacing already.

"But-"

Fed up with being subtle with Francesco, Lightning snapped. "Francesco, this is the only time I got to stay with Sally in the morning, and the only time I ever have to enjoy what time she has for me." He glared openly at Francesco. "Now, will you leave us alone, or do I have to break your face to do so?"

"But what does _Signorina_ Sally have to say?" Francesco put in. "After all, she is part-owner of your…moment."

To Lightning's surprise, Francesco was right. Cursing silently, the stock car racer nudged the girl in a blue suit gently.

"Wait, what?" she said, disoriented.

"Do you want him gone or anything?" he grumbled.

"No, of course not!" she said defiantly. "It's alright, Francesco, you can stay."

Francesco grinned, and called for a mug of coffee.

"What the hell was that?" Lightning growled low into Sally's ear as he settled down.

"Francesco is a guest, Stickers," Sally put in, looking at him with puppy-dog eyes of green. "Guests should be entertained, remember?"

"But he's invading our privacy," he argued.

"It's a risk we have to take," she replied. "Remember what we say in the motels?"

He sighed. "'Come happy, live happy, leave happy,'" he replied, rolling his eyes. "But can't he be an exception?"

She looked at him flatly. "He's a _guest_, Stickers. What's your definition of one?"

"Someone who respects privacy," he growled.

"Well, that's not mine," she shot back before turning to Francesco, effectively ending their conversation. "So, Francesco, what exactly are you doing here?" she asked smilingly.

"Oh, as I said, I am just visiting," he replied.

"Visiting who, me, Sally, or the town?" Lightning said sarcastically.

"Oh, the town, of course," Francesco replied. "Who else would I visit?"

Lightning rolled his eyes at the arrogance, and didn't see Francesco wink at Sally, who suppressed a giggle.

"Any problems back home?" Sally offered.

"Sadly, people have been chasing me everywhere since I returned to Porto Corsa," Francesco told them sullenly, his head bowing slightly. "You can say I've resorted to Radiator Springs for some…privacy."

"See?" Lightning burst out, standing. "You knew what privacy meant!"

"Stickers, that's rude!" Sally shot, glaring up at him. "If you don't want to talk, then go play with Mater!"

Boyfriend an girlfriend glared at each other before he turned to leave. Instead of hanging with Mater, who was, apparently, still asleep at seven in the morning, Lightning just turned and sat by Marlene with his mug of coffee and slammed his head on his arm, his arm being on the table.

Marlene stared at him, half-startled, half-amused. She pulled out the left plug from her ear. "What happened now?" she asked.

"Sally and Francesco," he groaned softly. That seemed to resolve whatever Marlene was asking, because she shrugged and plugged her ears again, returning to watch _The Big Bang Theory _online.

He looked up at her. "Don't you care?"

She looked back, pausing the video. "Am I supposed to?"

"Come on; you're the only one I can turn to for advice. You know the rest of them will give me some old-school answers, and Mater isn't exactly cool talking about relationships. No offense to the residents," he added for good measure.

"None taken," she replied, and glanced over the booth backrest to find Sally leaning forward in interest as she talked with the Italian. She turned back before she can stare. "Well, she's interested," she replied.

"But I was there!" Lightning told her softly. "And she just shrugged me off!"

"Well, there's nothing wrong with wanting to personally get to know a prestigious racer, which should also be one's celebrity crush," she replied gently. "I mean, a lot of people would kill to be in my place as your friend, or to have been there when I interviewed Jeff."

He stared at her for a moment, comprehending what she'd told him. He opened his mouth to speak, but she interrupted him.

"Look, maybe she's just doing it out of interest. This is a big opportunity for her, and I don't think she'll want to miss it for the world. Maybe not so much at your expense, but she may be blinded, too, by that opportunity."

He shook his head to clear his thoughts. "Whoa. You lost me."

She smiled. "What I'm saying is, you might want to let her do what she wants for a while. I mean, you can't just…keep her locked away in a tower. She has other things in life other than you. Not that I want to offend, but it's reality. You can't make her tie herself to you like you're the center of everything in her life and all that crap."

He looked at her with wide eyes. "You speak so much for someone single," he said.

She shrugged. "Whatever."

He sighed. "Maybe you're right." He tapped the table with his fingertips as he sat up. "But what will I do until then?"

"Go play with Mater," she replied, still watching.

He rolled his eyes. "Is that becoming a regular thing with you both? 'Go play with Mater'?"

"Mater's the only one that plays with you these days when he's not working," she replied.

"But I play with you, too," he told her.

"'Go play with Marlene' sounds _very_ wrong," she told him.

He glanced upwards in thought. "You're right," he said, and she sat back.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to watch _The Lizard-Spock Expansion_," she announced, and continued to watch.

Lightning couldn't help but glance back towards the lawyer and his rival, and felt a little angry at them both. But Marlene was right: there was no sense in destroying Sally's opportunity to get to know Francesco, just as it made no sense to overtake the first chance he got in a race.


	5. Chapter 5

_My writing style sucks. It looks like I'm focusing more on Marlene than Lightning and Sally. :/_

_Well, **anon**, what about three chapters in one day? 78D_

* * *

_**Chapter Five**_

The morning passed on. Marlene was still watching episodes of _The Big Bang Theory_. Lightning had left Flo's long before Sally and Francesco have. Work went on as usual for the rest of the town. Soon enough, it was a warm late afternoon that day, and Lightning thought about treating Sally to dinner.

He found her still working in the lobby at the reception desk, and smiled as he walked over. He thanked Chrysler Francesco was nowhere to be seen.

"Hey Sal," he called, and she gave an 'mm' of reply as she continued typing. "Wanna go out for dinner tonight?"

She looked up at him sadly. "Oh, sorry, but Francesco and I made plans," she told him. "I'm actually supposed to be ready by now, but I can't leave my work to Angel here."

Lightning glanced over to Angel, who was kind of the receptionist there apart form Sally herself. The girl pitched in whenever she can so she can have work. Angel shyly at Lightning for a moment, then returned to attending to a newcomer.

Frustration clawed at his heart and at his belly, but he tried keeping his anger down. "Why aren't you ready yet, then?" he asked flatly.

"Because I'm working," she said. "You know I hardly shirk paperwork in the middle of the day."

"Are you ready, _signorina_?" a voice called, this time soft and sweet, almost wooing, not as flirtatious as he did before. "Oh, _buona sera_, McQueen."

Lightning looked to see Francesco there in probably the most formal the stock car racer has ever seen his rival in. A plain white, long-sleeved button-up, straight black pants and black dress shoes was what Francesco wore. His relatively long hair was combed, flat and formal, instead of it 'poofing' upwards like curls refusing to straighten.

"Good evening to you, Francesco," Lightning almost growled, and Sally glared up at him. He rolled his eyes, and she turned back to her work.

"Well?" Francesco prodded as he leaned over the desk, siding by Lightning and staring at Sally.

"Oh! Yes, sorry about that," she told him, and hurriedly tried fixing the papers. "I am so extremely sorry, Francesco; I do believe you understand I'm not even finished with all this yet."

"Go ahead, _cara mia_," he told her. "I'm free to wait."

"That's a little blunt, Francesco," Marlene's voice rang at Lightning's other side. Over her shoulder was the strap of her laptop bag.

"Why?" Lightning asked.

"Why, _cara mia_ is 'my dear'," she told him, rolling her eyes. "You really should learn various titles for girls."

"Why? Do you speak Italian?" Francesco asked, leaning over to stare past Lightning.

"Um, yeah," she said.

"How?"

"College elective subject," she told him, and smirked at Sally. "Still working, eh?"

"Not really," Sally replied as she tried filing the papers.

"Hold it; what's going on?" Marlene asked, frowning. "Mr. Bernoulli disappeared for a day, and now he's here."

"Please, call me Francesco," the Italian offered.

"Erm…no thanks," she said. "You're not exactly a friend."

He laughed. "Any friend of Lightning McQueen's is Francesco's!"

"Still no."

Francesco made a poker face, and Lightning suppressed a smile. Usually, people called Francesco by his first name. But Marlene was probably the first to break that tradition.

"So, what happened, at any rate?"

"Sal has a date with him," Lightning said flatly.

"Oh?" Marlene wasn't exactly surprised. "Erm, congrats…I guess."

Sally smiled up at her friend. "Thanks."

"Miss, I'll handle that for you instead," Angel called as she finished attending to the new guests.

"No, I'll be fine."

"Sal, you don't want to keep Mr. Bernoulli waiting, do you?" Marlene said, smirking smugly at Sally.

"Yes, you don't want to keep him waiting," Lightning hissed slightly.

"Oh, fine," Sally said finally, and left the work to Angel. "Er…are you willing to wait a while?" she told the Italian sheepishly.

"_Si_," he told her. "Anything for the _bella_ _Signorina _Sally."

Sally blushed before hurrying away. The three stood there, unsure of what to do next.

"Wow." Marlene was thoroughly amazed, surprised and bewildered all at the same time. "What brought that on?"

"No idea," Lightning growled, and pushed roughly off the desk to stalk away.

"What brought that on?" Marlene asked Francesco.

"What brought what on?" His voice was more casual this time than flirtatious.

"That…'beautiful'…thing."

"Oh," he breathed, chuckling. "Haven't you heard Francesco is smooth among _le signore?_"

She looked at him, one brow cocked upwards. "Yes, I've seen," she mused.

"That was a part of it."

She nodded, swayed and weirded out completely. "Okay."

Marlene then focused on Angel's work, and asked questions about the girl. She answered truthfully despite the Italian being there. It was minutes later when Sally reappeared.

"I'm ready," she said, and Marlene, Francesco and Angel turned to see Sally in a baby blue dress, her hair casually tied back in a ponytail, semi-curly tendrils hanging off the sides of her face. She had little make-up on, just as she always does, and in her hands was a small blue clutch bag.

Francesco stared at her like a total idiot, lip popped open slightly. He walked a little towards Sally, pushing off the desk.

Marlene stared at Sally, then to the Italian, and couldn't help feeling frustrated. Why couldn't men stare at her like that? Well, maybe they did, but it was just about her car. At any rate, maybe this man wasn't for her, and instead shrugged it off. But maybe Lightning would like to know about this. After all, it was Sally. She leaned on the wooden panel, her back to it and her hands in her pockets, legs crossed casually.

Sally, on the other hand, shyly smiled at Francesco as she strode forward to meet her date. She thought he looked handsome in a plain white shirt instead of his usual green scarf, green vest and white shirt. She was excited, having looking forward to this date since this afternoon, and embarrassed at the same time because she felt she was stealing the Italian away from his fans. But whatever on that last note; Francesco was the one to invite her to dinner.

"_Dio mio,_" Francesco whispered as he gazed down into her pretty green eyes. "_McQueen ha mai detto come sei bella?"_

Sally only smiled as she glanced helplessly at Marlene.

The Italian-speaking American rolled her eyes. "'Has Lightning ever told you how beautiful you are?'"

At this, Sally blushed as she looked at Francesco. "Oh" was all she said, eyes blank as she stared into creamy brown. "I believe he has," she told him.

He then shook his head. "_Poi che non è abbastanza._"

"'Then that is not enough.'"

Sally chuckled, flushing, as Francesco took her hand and tucked it at the crook of his arm, siding by her. "_Vieni, bella _Sally_, e _Francesco_ vi mostrerà una grande momento._"

"'Come, beautiful Sally, and Francesco will show you a great time.'"

Sally giggled as they walked off towards the garage.

Marlene sighed. Maybe she was just as good a translator to Francesco and Sally. She sulked back to Flo's, and found Lightning out in one of the outdoor tables with a mug of coffee. She slunk into the seat beside him, her bag on her lap.

"What happened?" he asked her, still staring at the duo heading into the garage.

"He asked her if you ever told her how beautiful she is. She said yes. He replied with, 'Then that's not enough', continuing with"—she shuddered slightly—"_Vieni, bella _Sally_, e _Francesco_ vi mostrerà una grande momento._"

"Which means…?"

"_Come, beautiful Sally, and Francesco will show you a great time._"

Instantly, Lightning fumed, and balled his fists. Francesco had no reason to hit on Sally like that! But Sally had willingly accepted his invitation; what more can Lightning do but watch and wait?

"Are you going to drink that?" Marlene murmured at the untouched mug of caffeine.

"Go ahead," he told her, and she took the warm mug, sniffing the coffee goodness of Flo's.

"This is clean, isn't it?" she asked.

"Of course it is," he scoffed, and she took a sip. She instantly felt relieved.

"Nothing like coffee," she murmured, and resorted to making herself 'drunk' in the coffee.

"So, what are you going to do about Francesco and Sally?" she asked. "Not to pry or anything."

"What do you propose I do?"

"Wait," she said, "and see what happens. If it gets worse, I suggest confrontation."

He nodded as the red Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano sped away, resentment in his heart. He just hoped Sally would still be loyal to him.


	6. Chapter 6

_Am I late? xD_

_**Pancake: **__I know it does. :/ It seriously does, and I'm frustrated with it. But it's the only way for me to put in some hot drama. xD Yes, I don't think I can ever take Marlene out of the picture sometimes. xDDD Or, did you want me to do one without any of my OC's?_

_Sorry I didn't do one yesterday. ^-^" I wanted to do something else. xDD_

* * *

_**Chapter Six**_

Phoenix, Arizona. A some-thirty-minute drive from Radiator Springs at sixty miles. Francesco and Sally were in a hotel's restaurant, dining at a buffet. Although Francesco talked much about himself, he still asked Sally questions.

"So, how exactly is life in Radiator Springs?" he asked her.

"Well, everybody works, I guess. Luigi and Guido run _Casa della Tires,_ Flo has her gas station and café, Mater and Ramone kind of work together to help fix cars, Ramone does custom paint jobs, Sarge has his military surplus hut, and Filmore provides organics—fuel, food, you name it."

"And you?"

"I manage the motels, the Cozy Cone and Wheel Well, and handle cases for the most part."

He smiled. "Oh? Sent any criminals to jail lately?"

She laughed. "For the most part, I handle paperwork. But as I'm needed, I try defending my clients." He was looking at her with such bewilderment she had to explain. "You see, just because someone says 'lawyer' doesn't mean we always have to defend people. That's the case of, for example, a criminal assault attorney. In my case, I went more for business than actual civil law."

He nodded, lips forming an 'o' as he understood. "I hadn't really known that there were many types of lawyers."

"Oh, yes," she told him. "There are many. Maybe even too many to mention. Each type has their own specialization." She smirked at him. "Want me to enumerate a few?"

"Go ahead."

Big mistake. "There's the administrative lawyer, asbestos lawyer, bad faith insurance lawyer, bankruptcy lawyer, car accident lawyer, civil lawyer, compensation lawyer…"

"Yes, yes, I've heard enough," he interrupted, and she chuckled. He smiled slightly to let her know he wasn't offended.

"So, have you ever heard of pick-up lines lately?" he asked her after a while.

"Not really, no," she replied.

He nodded. "You should go to jail," he said flatly.

Alarmed, she stared at him, freezing in place.

"Why?"

He smirked at her. "Because you stole my heart."

She blushed thickly, and he smiled wider. "So, what does McQueen do?"

She exhaled softly in relief. "He pitches in when he can. He goes to races, and all that." She chuckled nervously.

"Not to pry, but how long have you both been together?"

"About five years," she replied proudly.

He nodded approvingly. "Five years is a long time."

"Yup." She sighed slightly, maybe even wistfully.

"No future plans?"

"Erm, not really," she replied sheepishly. "We…haven't talked about it yet."

He nodded understandingly. "Sally was probably as busy as McQueen is, maybe even more. Francesco himself hardly got to talk to his mother during a busy season.

At a thought, Francesco thought that Lightning was quite lucky to have Sally. Francesco hardly found an otherwise perfect girl, one who didn't care if he was a racing champion or a superstar.

A voice broke his thoughts.

"I'm sorry, what was that?"

She rolled her eyes smilingly. "Have you ever considered getting yourself a girlfriend?"

This time, Francesco blushed, eyes wide. "Erm, not really." He bowed his head.

"Why not? You're what every girl dreams about! You're a girl's definition of perfect!"

He chuckled slightly. "But not every girl is my definition of perfect."

Instantly, Sally was offended. "That's quite feminist."

"Oh, _scusa_," he apologized instantly. "Let me explain.

"In my years of racing, you've noticed how I've climbed the ladder in terms of skill on and off the track. My skill on the track per se is self-explanatory, is it not?" When she nodded, he continued. "But off the track, I should probably elaborate.

"It wasn't later in my career when I was first noted. Some told me it was my looks, to some was my progress." He sipped slightly at his wine. "One day though, a few races after my first win—else a few wins later—I left the garages, and I was ambushed by fangirls."

Sally chuckled softly, remembering Mia and Tia.

"It started getting worse. Sometimes I had to go in a disguise.

"And then, talk shows started asking for me. I went to a selected few, and it was pandemonium." He shook his head in disapproval, and Sally smiled.

"I started liking the attention, and soon, I was more confident about going out

"You may notice I'm what they call a flirt, _si_?" She nodded. "You can say I like playing the field. But it's all for fun, really. I enjoy playing like that. Don't be mad, but everyone has their limitations."

She nodded again, remembering not only her own, but Lightning's, too.

"Well, I may be a flirt, but I'm terribly serious about a relationship."

She frowned. "How so?"

"those fangirls like me because I win and I'm handsome and I'm rich," he told her, but his tone wasn't smug. "I know I am, but it's only because so many people tell me about it, it's hard not to ignore. At any rate," he continued, "I don't want a girl that's just there for my looks or riches."

"So…who are you looking for?" she asked. "I know it sounds wrong, but, well…yeah."

He stared at her, and to her, his brown eyes were serious and fervent. "That would be you, Sally."

_Oh. My. God._

How was she going to choose, she thought, between Lightning and Francesco? That would be like defending a truly guilty criminal in court! She nearly fainted if not for his next statement.

"What I mean is, you are loyal to McQueen, and I know you love him not because of his riches or his fame." He sighed, looking away. "I don't know where I can find a girl like you these days."

Sally blinked in relief, and her warm palm covered the cool skin of Francesco's hand comfortingly. "I'm sure you'll find someone, Francesco."

The Italian driver smiled gratefully at her, and Sally felt her heart flutter at his sweet smile.

"Did you know you've got an amazing smile?" she blurted, and covered her mouth as he looked at her in surprise. "Sorry, I just noticed."

He chuckled shyly, glancing down as he blushed. "Coming from you, I suppose it's…kind of like praise. If you know what I mean."

She smiled. "I suppose I do."

He returned the grin with his own. "So, I heard Wheel Well opened and that it was a perfect place for drinks…."

* * *

That eve, Lightning had dinner alone. He didn't feel like eating with Marlene tonight, but he let her do his dinner because one, he didn't know how to cook, and two, he didn't really want to face was quite happy to do something other than watch sitcoms all day.

He was upset as he ate. How can Sally go on a date with Francesco? She was his girlfriend! She was supposed to be loyal to him! Soon, frustration caused him to stop eating and dump the rest of his dinner into the trash. That was when he heard footsteps at the door.

Suspecting it was Sally, he stalked quietly to the wooden panel. He peered into the eyehole to be sure, and found Francesco with her.

"I enjoy tonight, Francesco," he heard her say.

The Italian smiled gently. "I'm glad you did."

Sally smiled back. There was an awkward moment of silence before she leaned over to kiss his cheek.

Fury almost blinded Lightning, and he nearly failed to catch Francesco's blush. As Sally headed for the door with the last glance at Francesco, Lightning dashed to the kitchen.

"Stickers, I'm home!" she called as the door shut.

"In here!" he replied.

Her arms slid around his waist then, and he couldn't help faltering from his anger. "Had dinner in?"

"Yeah. Couldn't eat without you." That was partly true.

She rubbed her cheek against the top of his back.

"How was your date?" he offered.

"Great," she said.

"'Great'?" he repeated.

"Well, maybe it was amazing," she corrected.

Jealousy prickled in his belly. "Why don't you go and rest already? You're had a long day," he said sweetly.

"Aw, thanks Stickers." She pecked his cheek gently before moving away.

After doing the dishes alone and a quick shower, he slipped under the covers in just his boxers. He was too frustrated to care Sally didn't like him going to be half-naked because 'he'll catch a cold or the flu'. Cool hands pressed to his skin, and soon, Sally was right there, whispering in his ear.

"Hi," she murmured sweetly.

"Not in the mood, Sal," he told her without facing her.

"No?"

"Nope."

She was quite put out, but tried again. "Just one little kiss," she pleased. When he didn't answer, she continued, "Just one." He still didn't answer. "Pleease?"

He turned to face her, quite irritated. "Sal, I told you-mmph!"

That last part was because Sally had pressed her lips to his and seizing the opportunity he so blatantly presented to her.

Lightning hadn't realized how much he craved her touch, and instead of remembering how she had gone off with Francesco, and his anger and frustration, he sank into the beautiful heaven of love and sensation.


	7. Chapter 7

_Nothing personal **anon**, but I'd like to keep Marlene as a major character here.  
_

_I know that, **Merestuffins.** :) That's why I didn't put this in the timeline of the Stevenson saga in my profile: because everything is so distorted after **My Best Friend**, so yeah, don't pay any attention to anything more than **MBF**. xD**  
**_

_I know you guys have threatened me with flames because I involved Marlene too much, and that I should involve Sally and Lightning more, and I'm sorry, because Marlene plays a vital role in this story._

_I'd like to note, there is a continuation of this chapter after Ch.7; the next chapter would kind of be an alternate Ch.6, so please wait! ^-^_

_Thanks Miss **Shadoru **for translations! ^-^  
_

* * *

_**Chapter Seven**_

Marlene was up and at 'em early , and was at Flo's in a two-seater table in the front right corner so she can see Sally and Lightning come in, although her back was to the window. As usual, her laptop was up, her charger plugged both ways, and a mug of freshly brewed decaf coffee to the side.

"_Buon giorno_," a familiar voice called, and was softer than yesterday.

"_Buon giorno,_" she replied as gently without looking up.

"_Posso unirmi a te?_" he asked her.

She looked up, scrutinizing him. In his hand was a mug of coffee, and in his eyes was nothing but calm.

"_Si._" He then settled in the seat directly across her.

"_Cosa ci fai tu qui?_" she asked, sipping from her mug.

"_Non ho visto McQueen, non ancora_," he murmured, glancing out the window as he, too, sipped at his coffee.

She stared at him. _"Non stai parlando in terza persona,_" she implied.

He stared back, unamused. "_Devo sempre parlare in terza persona?_" he shot back. "And will you please stop speaking in Italian? It's freaking me out."

She grinned at him, and he scoffed, looking elsewhere. As she refocused on her computer screen, he turned back to her.

"How on earth did you learn Italian, at any rate?"

She stared at him, eyes as wide as his with interest. "College elective subject," she replied. "I've had a thing for Europe since I was a kid."

He nodded, sipping at the beverage and looking away again. Usually, it wasn't odd to start a conversation with someone, but only because they were interested in him. This time, he was interested in her.

"So, I don't think you've formally introduced yourself."

She glanced up at him, and back to the screen. "My name is Marlene Stevenson. My best friend is Lightning McQueen. I'm just here for some two-week vacation, as well as an opportunity for work." She looked at him. "Anything you'd like to say?"

"Not really," he said. "A lot of people know me by heart, even if I don't' know them."

"Oh?" Her eyes were glinting with interest. "I don't know you, although Lightning said much about you."

"Oh, he did, didn't he?" Francesco chuckled. "Do I live up to expectation?"

She stared at him, gaze scrutinizing. "Maybe. He clearly said you like speaking in third person. Although I don't know whether that's true or not."

"Why not?"

"Aren't you speaking in first person today?" She smiled slightly at him.

"Oh," he breathed, chuckling. "Sorry."

"Don't take it personally," she replied.

"Anything else?"

Her forefinger tapped her chin as she looked up thoughtfully. "Well, he did say you were quite obnoxious when you speak." She stared at him with a slight frown. "You know, you're asking me to sell out my best friend here."

"Don't worry, I'm only asking for you opinion," he replied.

"You won't get back at Lightning for this?"

"I won't."

She narrowed her eyes. "Swear?"

He raised his palms. "I swear."

Her frown disappeared as quickly as it had appeared, and she continued thinking. "He told me you were full of yourself, but I don't hear any of that crap."

"And…you don't think any of that is true?"

"Well, it's hard to say on the, say, 'full-of-yourself' part really," she replied, tone matter-of-factly. "Anything else, well, I'm reconsidering so far."

He smiled, like he was saying 'are you serious?' "'So far'?"

"Well, you're bound to show me something someday," she told him. "Once people are comfortable around others, they tend to lose track on what they're saying or how they act."

"With you, I don't think I have to," he replied, and she rolled her eyes, although the pinking of her cheeks was very much unmistakable to the Italian.

"What exactly are you doing?" he asked after a moment.

"Article," she replied, keys clacking as she typed.

"Oh, you're a journalist?"

"M-hm."

He stood and turned to leave.

Instantly she grabbed his wrist, alarm in her bright green gaze. "Where are you going?" she asked.

He stared down at her, mildly amused. "You're not going to interview me, aren't you?"

"No," she replied. "Did I mention that?"

"No," he said, voice soft. He cocked his head slightly to the side. "Why do you want me to stay?"

"You're nice to talk to."

A warm feeling erupted within Francesco's chest at this, and he sat down again.

"I'm wondering: why be so repulsive of a journalist?" she asked.

"Reporters hound me all the time," he replied. "I suppose it's a bad habit."

She chuckled. "I think I can understand," she replied as she continued typing.

"So, what exactly do we talk about?" he asked.

"I dunno."

"Then why am I still sitting here?" he asked and stood quickly.

"No!" she cried out, and he chuckled with a full-blown grin as he sat down again. She rolled her eyes as she continued with her work.

"What happened last night, by the way?" she asked.

He eyed her and her laptop. "When will you finish that?" he asked. His tone was merely curious.

"Ah? Oh!" She hurriedly deleted a few things and typed. "Well, I really have to finish this today."

"Why today?" He raised a brow.

"Well, if I'm going to enjoy the rest of the next week," she started, and closed her laptop after pulling out the charger and her serial buses, "without the hassle of deadlines and constant editing," she folded the screen and started tying up the charger cord, "I'm going to have to finish it ASAP." She smirked at him for a second. "Wouldn't want me to scurry up and down along my keyboard six days later, now, would we?"

"'We'?"

"Oh, _oui_," she replied. "I hate cramming sometimes, but procrastination is awesome, isn't it?"

He smiled back. "Oh, _si_; I know how that feels." He watched her pack up. "But wait, what do you mean 'we'?"

She stared at him. "_Oui_ means yes, doesn't it?"

"I meant the 'we' part, you know, of 'would we'?"

"Ohh." She finally understood. "Well, it's a general term, 'we'," she told him. "I didn't mean 'we', as in, you and me, or anything, but you know…"

"Yes, not us, right," he agreed, clearing his throat.

Both were at an awkward moment once more, and as she finished packing up, she leaned forward, arms on the table.

"So, what happened last night?" she offered for conversation.

"Well, we had dinner," he replied, shrugging.

"That's it? You had dinner?" She raised her brows.

"We-ell," he said, almost shy someone wants him to talk about something other than himself. Well, in a sense.

"Come on, don't be shy," she prodded. "I'm not going to bite or anything."

He didn't meet her gaze as he recounted last night's conversation. She nodded and sipped at her mug of tea alternately at irregular intervals. There was a moment of silence as he finished.

"You're not going to write about it, are you?"

"Nope. It's private; I refuse to write about personal things."

He stared at her, suddenly unsure. "Are you listening only because I'm Francesco, or because I'm Francesco Bernoulli, or because of the gossip of your friend?"

She blinked, startled slightly. "The third, maybe. The first two I don't get."

"Are you listening to me because you want to listen or because you have to in order to stay with me?"

"You mean, to stay here and not exactly listen but to stare at you?" As he nodded, she replied shortly, "Then the answer is that I'm listening to you because I want to listen."

It was his turn to be taken aback. She explained at the cue of his eyes widening slightly.

"I mean, it's not always that everyone listens to someone else because they just want to stare at them. I for one, like to take pleasure in talking to people, asking them about themselves and offering my own info and output on issues." She glanced down for a moment. "It's pretty useless not to listen to others just because all you want is to sit there and be in the presence of that person. It's actually rude, because the other person is wasting time and energy at their expense. And you can say it's a habit of mine to listen."

He chuckled. "So, what do I do about those who don't listen to me? I have had a lot of dates lately that don't even know what subject the conversation is."

"Well, tell them to get lost right then and there. I know the first step in finding a decent girl is the first date," she said as he tried to defend himself, "but if all she wants is to stare at you, she's pretty much useless." She shrugged.

"But what if she isn't?"

"She did prove that all she could do is stare, didn't she? Don't assume she can do anything else unless she proves it to you. _That's_ the key to knowing if someone can do something or not." She stared at him. "You do want a useful wife, do you?"

He snorted. "Of course I do."

"Then that settles it." There was a moment of silence once again, until she broke it. "I have to admit, Lightning was wrong about you," she commented.

"Really?"

"M-hm."

"Thank you," he said, smiling.

She returned it. "You're welcome."

It was silent for a while before he spoke. "When are you free?" he asked abruptly. "I'd like to talk more with you."

she had stared at him calmly before she spoke, smiling. "I'm not leaving for another week, maybe more," she replied thoughtfully. "Pick a day."

"What about tonight?" he asked.

Her lips curled over her teeth in an amused smile. "Time?"

"Six-forty-five?"

"It's a date," she replied, and both finally finished their coffee.

"Oh, there he is," Francesco said, and Marlene looked out to see Lightning stalking to the front doors. Francesco stood, but Marlene grabbed his wrist.

"He looks mad," she murmured as her friend entered.

"Nonsense," he replied, smiling at her. "Now let me go."

She rolled her eyes, but released him. "Good luck; you'll probably need it."

* * *

_Translations(again?)(conversation is as follows):_

_May I join you?  
What brings you here?  
I don't see McQueen yet.  
You're not speaking in third person.  
Is it always I have to speak in third person?_


	8. Chapter 8

_**This chapter is the 'meanwhile' version of Ch.6 so you guys know why Lightning stalked to Flo's. :)**_

_The continuation to Ch.6 is in Ch.8. :)_

* * *

_**Chapter Eight**_

Lightning sighed as he opened his eyes to reality. The fuzz of sleep interfered with his vision, and he blinked until he could see the little speckles in the ceiling, illuminated dimly by the faint sunlight filtering through the charmeuse curtains.

He moved slightly, only to find Sally's head was on his chest. She moaned slightly, snuggling closer to him. He smiled, and stroked her dark hair gently. She stirred slightly, and he continued this until she raised her head groggily. She looked around, wondering what happened, until her eyes met his. She smiled, and she pressed her lips to his. He moaned slightly, reality slipping from his mind's fingertips as her sweet, soft maw moved over his. Soon enough, he was kissed to incoherence.

The next moment he knew he opened his eyes he was breathing hard, and Sally was still snuggling against him.

"We have got to stop doing that in the morning," he told her.

"Why?"

"I'm exhausted before the day's even started!" he told her breathlessly.

She chuckled and kissed his cheek lovingly. "I love you," she told him softly.

"I love you too," he replied, and pressed his lips to hers.

He then scrambled off the bed, the sparks of the morning's events making him shiver still in excitement, ecstasy and almost exhaustion, and freshened up before getting dressed. He staggered back into the room after dressing. She was in her work clothes already.

"Breakfast?" he offered.

"I think I'll catch it at Flo's," she replied, fixing a few papers on the desk to the wall.

His arms slid around her waist. "Do you love me?" he asked her.

"I just admitted to you, remember?" she retorted smilingly.

"Yeah, but I'd like to ask you about your stunt with Francesco."

She jerked. "What stunt?"

"You know, that dinner date."

She stared at him. "You make 'dinner date' sound like a bad thing."

"Well, it probably should be, considering you're my girlfriend."

She stared at him even more. "Are you suggesting I'm cheating on you?"

"No, it's just…uncomfortable for me to know you're with another man, especially Francesco." He scratched his head.

"Stickers, are you jealous?" she asked him sweetly.

"Erm, no?"

She chuckled. "You don't have to be," she replied softly before kissing his nose and returning to her papers.

"Well, I can't help feeling so, can I now?" he spat. It was like she was accusing him!

"Well, you don't have to be," she replied, voice tense.

He started getting uncomfortable. She was evading him. "I have as much right to after that kiss at the doorstep," he growled.

She turned on him then. "Stickers, that's not fair!"

"The hell it isn't!" he snarled. "You never kissed me during our first date!"

He didn't want to hear her defend herself, because he knew it would be pretty much useless. She was waaay smarter than him when it came to defense, and he stalked out of the room. There he found a familiar sight: Francesco talking with a girl.

But oh, not just any girl: it was Marlene.

He stalked into the café. At least Francesco didn't have to deal with that kind of problem.

* * *

_I know it's extremely short, but it's all I could do in the time limit Lightning and Sally were given and the rating I put this in! xDDD_


	9. Chapter 9

_Guys, thanks, seriously, for the views and reviews; I just hit 214 hits at the end of the day, the greatest number of hits in my stories so far. __**Isn't that something?**__ I mean, this is the first story I ever had 156 hits in one day; surely I should celebrate? Unfortunately for me, I can't. xD My parents will kill me if they knew I was publishing stories online. :/_

_**tinkfan14**__, who is apparently my newest reviewer/fan, thanks for reviewing! 8D I don't usually get reviews from viewers because they're either scared to, lazy, or don't know how to. xD At any rate, they feed me views and let me know they love it. _

_To Miss __**Shadoru**__, yes I use a translator; I don't know Italian(lucky you) and thanks for the reviews~ Think you could help me out on translations? ^-^ O.o_

_Beloved __**Mere**__, it's 'oui'. xD It's 'yes' in French. If any of you watched _Ratatouille**, **_you'd relate. :) And what's your comment on Ch.5? O.o Didn't hear that, sorry._

_**Pancake**__, I _always _put translations in bilingual dialogue. xD Not really, if you think about it. :)_

…_I don't exactly know how to give more SalQueen; I'm used to playing with various characters these days. O.o_

* * *

_**Chapter Nine**_

"Lightning McQueen!" Francesco called, and sided by his friend/rival.

"What is it now, Francesco?" Lightning groaned.

"Francesco just wanted to talk to you."

Lightning buried his face in his hands. "I don't want to talk, Francesco."

"Oh."

Just then, Sally appeared. "Morning," she greeted the two, pressing her lips to Lightning's temple light nothing happened, and stopped herself from fully stretching up and to kiss Francesco on the cheek.

"_Buon giorno_, _Signorina_ Sally," Francesco greeted, smiling down at her.

Sally blushed before getting herself a mug of caffeine. "Steaming hot?" She smirked at Tia.

"On the dot!" one of Radiator Springs' twins replied before leaving and returning with a hot mug of coffee.

Sally brought the brim to her lips, sipping as her eyes scoured the crowd. "Ooh, there's Marlene," she said, and was happy she was excused from the awkwardness of the men. She settled in Francesco's former seat.

When Lightning felt happy enough to face the Italian, he found Francesco staring at Sally's general direction. Irritation made Lightning's skin itch, because the look Francesco wore was almost wistful.

"Isn't she beautiful?" Francesco murmured as he stared at one o the brunettes.

"Yes, she is." Lightning fought to keep his tone as wistful, but couldn't help the lingering feeling of being betrayed.

The Italian took a sip at his refilled mug. "I enjoyed talking to her."

Lightning stared at Francesco in surprise. "You're not speaking in third person."

Francesco gave himself a face palm. "Is it always that I have to speak in third person?" he said for the second time that day.

"Sorry," Lightning murmured, and going back, he replied, "She's naturally that way."

"She is?" Francesco's eyes widened at Lightning slightly before turning back. "Well, I guess she is."

"What did you talk about, anyway?" Lightning asked out of curiosity and maybe even insecurity.

"Nothing much."

"Why can't you talk about it?"

"You could say we promised not to talk about it," Francesco replied as he sipped from his mug again.

Suddenly, the two girls glanced at the two men, Sally turning slightly in her seat. Marlene stared at Lightning before waving 'hi'. Lightning chuckled at her enthusiasm, and, amused, he waved back. Out of the corner of Lightning's eye, Francesco waved, and Sally returned it. Marlene smiled, gazing elsewhere, then the girls turned back to there conversation.

Francesco sighed, long and wistful. At this, Lightning silently fumed. The American sort of knew the Italian was out to get Sally, no matter how hard or what happened.

On the Formula superstar's side, it wasn't about Sally. Sally could be someone he liked, but Sally wasn't as outgoing, opinionated and spontaneous as Marlene when Sally was around him. Sally didn't give him advice the first time they talked. Sally didn't ask him to stay when he left. Although he wasn't sure how far Marlene would go in terms of being in a relationship and all it implied.

"I almost forgot; we have a date later," Francesco told his friend.

Lightning stared in surprise. "When did you set it?"

"Just this morning."

The American was extremely shocked. Sally wasn't even out yet, and Francesco had set up another date with her? Maybe they'd agreed last night or one of them phoned the other. Yes, that must be it. But nonetheless, Sally wasn't supposed to do that to him, to agree to date someone else. They were boyfriend and girlfriend, not friends with benefits!

"Congrats."

"_Grazie_, McQueen."

To Lightning, Francesco was smug as usual. To Francesco, he was happy.

* * *

_(Meanwhile? Occurs just after Sally settles in Francesco's former seat.)_

"So, I heard you and Lightning had a date the other night," Sally told her friend. "What happened?"

"Well, we talked about the championships, then me and my interview with Jeff, right up until he got Mia's text."

"And what was in it?"

"She told him Francesco was going to visit, and suddenly, the topic revolved around him. Marlene shrugged.

Instantly, Sally felt jealous, but she didn't know why. All she knew was she reacted at the superstar's name. "What about Francesco?"

"Oh, we promised I wouldn't tell anyone." _May as well publish it if I did_.

"Really?"

"Yuppers."

After a moment, Sally decided she can tell Marlene about her problem with Lightning. Time? tonight. But was Stickers' best friend-girl free?

"Hey, are you free tonight?" Sally asked. "I'd like to talk after work."

"Oh no, I'm so sorry," Marlene said sadly. "I have a date tonight."

"Ooh." Sally nodded. "With whom?"

Marlene smirked.

"With Stickers?" Sally almost shrieked.

"No, of course not," Marlene retorted.

"Oh." Sally relaxed. "Who, then?"

"Oh, a certain Italian who came by," the journalist hinted, smirking once more.

Sally knew full well who it was Marlene was referring to.

To Sally, there was no right answer. She would feel jealous whether it was Francesco or Lightning that would take her close friend out. And now, she felt a little mad at Marlene and wanted to warn her friend to get out and stay out. But she can't. It was a scary thought for Miss Carrera.

But she wouldn't show it. "Oh, you mean that fat guy who spoke Italian and we needed you to translate? He thought you are pretty, remember?"

"What? No!" Marlene spat at a bewildered-looking Sally. "I mean I'm going out with Francesco Bernoulli!" There was a moment for tense silence as Marlene looked around. "Oh, almost forgot, I didn't sat 'hi' to Lightning yet," Marlene murmured, and both turned to face the men leaning against the counter.

Marlene waved at her friend, and Lightning waved back smilingly. Something else caught her eye though, and found Francesco waving, too. Marlene smiled at him just as Sally waved.

But who was Sally waving at? Lightning or Francesco? Marlene tensed inwardly, because she was sure Sally stared at Francesco.

To Sally, Francesco wasn't looking at her, but past Sally, at Marlene, Lightning was pointedly staring past Marlene, and both ideas made Sally feel left out and jealous. Her spat with Lightning didn't help, either.

The two returned to there conversation, but both women were tense, and instead settled quietly with coffee.

* * *

…_is not sorry for short post! xD_


	10. Chapter 10

_Miss __**Shadoru**__, thanks again for the corrections! ^-^ And you might want to correct me once again~ xD_

_For you car lovers, please don't flame; I wanted to censor colorful words the easy way._

_Personally, I had fun doing this chapter. x3 My fingers didn't as I wrote it in class this morning, and finding the right word for Francesco was…not cool. x( But I'm happy about it anyway. xD_

* * *

_**Chapter Ten**_

All four friends wen their separate ways after that. Marlene continued work at Flo's. Lightning played with Mater. Sally had paperwork. Francesco talked with Luigi and Guido. That was, at least, until Lightning returned, found Marlene and wanted to talk to her.

"Hey," he greeted her as he sat down.

Marlene looked up at him past her glass lenses and smiled. "Hi."

"Can I talk to you?"

"Well, you're sitting there already; may as well start." She chuckled slightly.

He breathed. "It's about Sally."

"Mm. What about?"

"They have a date tonight, he said grudgingly.

"They do? Again?" Her eyes were wide with shock. Wider than usual in fact, and it shocked Lightning thoroughly.

"Why? What's it to you?"

At her shock, he instantly knew that she had some interest in his rival/friend. But why? She didn't like Jeff; how else if it were Francesco?

She relaxed, but hurt flared in her chest. "Nothing."

As Lightning stared at her though, she looked crushed. "Don't trust Francesco," he told her, and she looked up at him with sad eyes. "He'll only break your heart."

Irritation surged through Marlene, and she fought to not narrow her eyes. "But…what if he doesn't?" she squeaked at him.

"Oh, he will," he replied. He wanted to save his friend from heartbreak once more. "Believe me, he will."

She only nodded. Not that she wouldn't need his warning, but it was like her most favorite of quotes: don't knock it 'til you've tried it. She'd 'try him out' first.

* * *

That even, Francesco knocked on the door of Room 11. He was suited up in a usual white dress shirt, but this time, he sported, over his shirt, a green waistcoat, and around his neck was a red neckerchief. Below were black pants and same-color shoes. The wooden panel swung open, and he smiled into bright green eyes.

"_Buona sera_," she greeted him.

He chuckled slightly. "_Buona sera_," he replied. "_Pronta?_"

"_Pronta,_" she agreed.

He glanced at her for a moment. Although her long hair was tied up, it sort of curled, like ribbons tied to balloons, the tied ends held up as the ends flowed in unison. Her long bangs were side-swept, its ends tucked in her ear. She barely had make-up on, and he was stumped between little or none.

It also startled him she didn't wear a dress, unlike Sally. Instead, she was in a pale green button-up, and it greatly matched her eyes. She had straight black pants on, with over two-inch heels to complete her ensemble. Her accessories consisted of a small bag, a silver watch, and small pearl earrings.

"_Non collana di perle?_" he asked.

"_Io non volevo esagerare_," she replied. "_Ma, se tu mi chiedi di usare questo..._" she mused.

"_No, va bene,_" he replied, smiling. "_Andiamo?_"

She giggled shyly before stepping out and locking the door. She then tucked her hand into the crook of his arm before smiling up at him. "_Andiamo_," she agreed.

He smiled widely before leading her down the hall and the building and out of the lobby, both engaged in a conversation in Italian.

Sally couldn't think through the jealousy that surged up and down her veins. She wanted to tell Marlene to back off, but then, maybe the date wouldn't go so well when Francesco was a pretty arrogant person. At least, that was according to Lightning. And Marlene can't stand that kind of guy. She almost smiled slyly, if not for the fact they were talking with such enthusiasm in Francesco's foreign tongue, where, as Francesco told Sally, almost all of the girls he's dated never spoke in.

Lightning, on the other hand, was just heading for the motel. Unfortunately, as he was just across the road, Marlene and Francesco, arm in arm, strode out of the building, still talking in Italian.

He was shocked. He had just told Marlene to stay away from Francesco, and here she was, walking with the Italian superstar without a care if anyone caught them together. He knew she always took his advice, even if it was as stupid as not going into the water because it was too hot or cold. But this time, she took no heed of his warning. He was jealous and furious at the same time. Furious because she didn't trust him this time. Jealous because she looks so happy with one of the greatest racers in the world, who just happened to be as arrogant and obnoxious as hell.

The couple entered the garage, and Lightning found out they weren't going to use Francesco's F430.

"_May we try out your R8_?" Francesco asked in his foreign tongue. "_I've been wanting to try Audi for months now, but I don't really have the time to fly to Germany_."

She looked at him skeptically but smilingly. "'_Don't have the time'?_" she repeated.

He scratched his head_. "I, well, I guess I didn't think that through,_" he replied, slightly embarrassed.

She shook her head, rolling her eyes, and patted her pockets. "_Ooh, sorry, I don't have my keys with me._"

"_Oh, that's alright_," he said, but she fished them out of her bag, and dangled it in front of him.

She laughed as he snatched the keys from her hand, and they settled in the front seats of the R8.

He smiled at her just as he shifted the gears, and drove out onto open road.

The instant the R8 was out on the open road.

* * *

"Sal?" Lightning called at the desk.

She didn't have to turn. "Yes?"

"What do you think Marlene and Francesco were going?" he asked her.

"Oh, I don't have a clue," she told him. _And I pretty much don't give a damn._

But unfortunately, she did give a damn. She gave a damn as to what Francesco was doing with Marlene, to what Marlene was doing with Francesco, what they were going to do tonight, what will happen to the next few days, and oh, the list can go on!

He sighed. "What do you think?"

"Look, Stickers, I don't really have the time to talk. I've got paperwork to do, remember?" she said, irritated her boyfriend took up the subject. She really didn't want to talk about Marlene going out with the superstar.

"Okay, okay," he told her, backing off. "Don't have to scream like that."

She rolled her eyes, and Angel smiled. "Men," Sally murmured, and the two burst to laughter.

* * *

Once again, Francesco was in Phoenix. Only, he wasn't headed for the hotel he and Sally had gone to the other night.

"Where are we headed?" she asked.

"Somewhere," he told her. Actually, he didn't have a place in mind.

"You don't know where we're going, do you?" she asked as she stared at him.

"Er, no, not really."

She sighed, looking forward. "I'm not a resident of Phoenix, either."

He chuckled. "Not all-over-the-place?"

"Not really," she replied sheepishly.

"No, that's fine," he told her. "After a race, I usually just want to stay home."

She nodded. "Ooh, I heard the cuisine there is awesome," she told him.

He made the turn, and called for valet parking as they rounded the driveway. "Make one dent and I will sue," Francesco snarled low, and the terrified valet nodded in fear.

As they walked to the hotel, Marlene asked, "How did you know?"

He smiled at her. "How did I know what?"

"You knew what to say to the valet."

He nodded. "I do that every time."

She grinned as she pressed her head to his upper arm.

Marlene and Francesco were seated at a table by one of the large windows that stretched up to the ceiling. After comments on the chosen appetizers and dishes from the line of entrée s at the buffet were done, talk ensued. Common questions were asked: favorites, likes and dislikes, and so on. Until there was a question that Francesco raised.

"Marlene?"

"Yes?"

"How can you talk to me? Freely I mean, because just about all the women I've met and dated are either tense or obnoxious or flirty."

She didn't know whether to take that as praise or a question, but nonetheless, Marlene answered. "I think the point would be I'm not trying to impress you. I mean, I'm not trying so hard to do so, don't get me wrong," she added quickly. She looked up thoughtfully. "Maybe it's also that I don't necessarily know you." At his alarm, she explained. "Look at it this way: all the girls you've met-well, maybe not all of them-must've done research on you. Your achievements, likes dislikes, what have you. I haven't. This would be the first time I've ever heard of Francesco Bernoulli, as in, ever. The way I see it, knowing what you've done from the source himself is better than reading fabricated and exaggerated notes on the Internet." She breathed. "That was long."

He chuckled. "I suppose you have a point."

"But I'd like to admit I am a little tense right now." She chuckled nervously.

"Me too."

She stared at him, observant. "I'd say you don't have to be, but first date jitters will always be there, right?"

He stared back in surprise. "how do you know so much?"

She shrugged, smiling. "Well, for one, I'm trying to avoid first world problems, and two, I'm kind of analytical here. You know put two and two together, plus knowing the possibility of you reacting positively or negatively." She shrugged again.

Amused, Francesco grinned. It was quiet after the, until Marlene raised a question of her own.

"Francesco," she stared, "how come someone like you doesn't have anyone yet?"

He stared at her mid-chew. "Innocent question," she told him.

He swallowed, pausing to think. "I…I guess I just haven't found the right girl yet."

She smiled sympathetically, sweetly. "Me too," she said softly.

He smiled back before reluctantly tearing his gaze away form hers.

What was that he saw in her eyes? Some form of love? Nobody had ever stared at him that way. Oh wait, his mother used to look at him like that. What described that look in her eyes? Loving? No, it's just the first date! Cute? No, cute was _far_ from that. Soft? Beautiful? Yes, that was it.

After years of staring into her family's and friends' dark brown, green and pale blue irises, his, holding the color of milk chocolate, was kind of a break. Not that she wanted to look away, but it was awkward to stare. And she wanted to.

Dinner went by smoothly, with enthusiastic conversation in both English and Italian. Dessert had been skipped due to full bellies, and instead decided to return to Radiator Springs.

Francesco led Marlene back into the Cozy Cone. In the lobby, both Lightning and Sally were there, with Lightning hiding in the seats and Sally still working. Marlene and Francesco greeted Sally a good night, and the lawyer smiled at them sweetly. Lightning turned his head. They didn't seem to notice. As soon as Marlene and Francesco were at the elevators, Lightning and Sally headed upstairs, via the next elevator and the stairs, respectively.

The building had four floors with a total of fourteen rooms, the quarters being classified as regular, luxury, or suite. Two suites were located on the fourth floor. Rooms 12 thought 9 were on the third floor as luxury rooms, whereas rooms 8 through 1 are on the first floor as regular rooms.

Sally and Lightning were lucky they had corners to hide in, but unfortunately, Sally had taken the first one just after the elevators, and Lightning had to cross the hall's 'intersection' to get to the next corner. And of course, Sally noticed.

_What are you doing here?_ she mouthed.

_Same as what you're doing here,_ he spat silently.

"Thank you for tonight," Marlene's voice sounded. Sally and Lightning turned to watch.

Marlene was standing between Francesco and the door leading to Room 11, smiling sweetly up to the Italian, her hands in his. Sally felt jealousy and frustration once again, thought Lightning felt slightly happy his friend found love despite the ignorance of his warning, although he was a little jealous and still frustrated she didn't trust him.

"You could say it was my pleasure," Francesco replied, and both chuckled.

"I really did enjoy tonight, Francesco," she told him.

"How'd I do?"

"Better than I imagined," she replied smilingly.

He smiled back, staring into her green gaze in wonder. This was his first real date in years, and for the first time since, he was afraid to let her go.

This, too, was her first real date in years. She was close to saying aloud, "At long last, I've found a decent man!"

Tentatively, Francesco bent his head to press his lips against hers.

Both their gazes slid shut at the touch. The feeling was inexplicable, and if there was a word for it both bet no one had invented it yet, or there are too many words to describe it

Francesco was used to this, yet tonight, it felt so strange to him. It could have been that it was different with every girl. Yes, that could be it. But no, this was the only one that stood out. It could be that she was the first to really listen to him, the first to make him listen, the first to accept him as he was without the flair, fame riches on speaking in third person. Yes, that was definitely it.

What made Francesco so special to the Americana? Usually, one date with her was closed by a formal 'good-night'. Anything else would earn the man a punch to the belly and that would be their last date. But tonight, she let him do so despite her standards. But why? Why was he so special all of a sudden? Oh, that's right: he was the first to have a lively conversation with her, the first to really share her interests, the first to relate with [her] first world problems.

Sally gasped slightly, almost stumbling back a step, and a red haze threatened to blind her as she tensed in fury, clenching her jaw and fists tightly. Never had she been this jealous of her friend, because, from the start, there was nothing to be jealous of about Marlene. Except for this. Except for _him_.

Lightning was partially elated, partially frustrated. Elated because Marlene had found someone [at long last]. Frustrated because he caught Sally's reaction. And the frustration overpowered the elation because he knew why Sally was frustrated.

Before, he used to be the light of her world. She said so herself. But now that Francesco and Marlene are together, and that she had taken a liking to Francesco, what would Sally do now? Fight or flight? That seemed to be the question, but Lightning didn't care; Sally was focused on Francesco this time.

At this realization, he wanted to bolt down the stairs and lock the door to his headquarters forever to Sally. Because he suddenly didn't feel like doing anything with Sally anymore. Not anymore, now that she was focused on Francesco.

But he didn't. He wanted to see his friends' date through.

Francesco then lifted his face from hers, and her eyes fluttered open at him. As he stared into her pale green gaze he thought they were clouded or something. Nonetheless he enjoyed whatever they had; that was the point now.

She gazed up at him, her green eyes searching unconsciously. But…searching for what? There was nothing to look for…except for the feeling in his eyes. She had high hopes that he would like her back as she did so for him, and well, maybe she didn't have to hope much.

He smiled down at her, sweet and slight. "_So, I will see you tomorrow?_" he asked her.

"_I believe I will,_" she replied, and squeezed his fingers gently, smiling as she did.

He smiled wider. "_Buona notte, bella signorina_," he murmured.

"_Buona notte, grazioso Francesco_," she replied.

He lifted her fingers to his lips, and as he let go of her, she disappeared behind the wooden panel, still smiling. Francesco paused for a moment, glancing down to the floor as he bit his lip, then towards the door, then shook his head. He'd see her tomorrow. He took heart in that, and walked to the elevators with a hop in his step.

Sally scrambled away towards the elevators. Lightning leaned on the corner, staring at Francesco with an amused smirk on his face, arms folded across his chest. Francesco noticed Lightning there. The American hadn't known he bought Sally time to escape.

"So, how'd it go?" he told his friend.

"McQueen," Francesco called, startled. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, I came up here to see if Marlene was home, but when I came up here you were there at the door, kissing the journalist."

Francesco's eyes widened, startled and sheepish. "Er" was all he could say as his cheeks ran a slightly pinkish hue.

Lightning chuckled, and clapped his friend on the back. "Don't worry about it; her you can have," he growled low. "Just stay away from Sally and I'll tolerate you for as long as it takes." Lightning's voice was dangerously calm. Before Francesco can reply, Lightning stalked down the stairs.

Downstairs, Lightning found Sally helping Angel with the last of the papers. Both exchanged glares before Lightning stalked out of the motel.

Lightning, on the other hand, was biased between locking the door to the apartment-like pad in his HQ or not. He just didn't, because it wasn't fair for him to lock Sally out like that. He just got into bed though, and hoped sleep would claim him before she came, because he didn't want anything of her tonight.

* * *

_Translations(conversation as follows xD)__:_

_Ready?  
__No pearl necklace?  
__I didn't want to overdo it. But if you ask me to wear it...  
__No, that's fine.  
__Shall we?_

* * *

_Is not sorry for long post! xD_


	11. Chapter 11

_Alright, thanks guys for waiting and reviewing and re-reading my chapters(probably). It took so long because of the amount of stress and work I am in these days(what work? What stress? xDD), and besides, the prospect of doing fillers for the purpose of tensing relationships is fun. xD At any rate, to my fans, please visit my profile for some VERY important updates!_

_Thanks again, Miss **Shadoru**, for translation; I don't think I'll need your services for a while longer, although it's been a pleasure(and a very embarrassing one at that O.o)._

* * *

_**Chapter Eleven**_

The next morn, a familiar face was at the front right corner, still with her glasses and her laptop, serial buses and charger plugged with a coffee to the side. He grinned and strode inside.

"_Buon giorno,_" he told her as he sat in yesterday's seat.

She smiled back at him. "_Buon giorno a voi,_" she replied.

He called for a cup of coffee, and both once again engaged in an enthusiastic conversation.

Lightning was next to enter the café, and settled in a quiet booth with an order of a stack of pancakes. He wasn't feeling good enough to have his usual mug, and today he preferred the sweetness of syrup and the warmth of the cakes. It was set in front of him, and he started digging in.

Sally was looking for Francesco last night. He couldn't get over that. She told him she didn't have time for her to talk, but she had time to go out with Francesco? That wasn't fair; it wasn't right.

That was when Sally had arrived. She found Lightning, and settled by him. "Hi," she told him.

"Hey," he said through a mouthful.

She sighed, and looked wistfully at Marlene and Francesco, talking like old friends as she packed up. Lightning saw this, and asked, "What exactly is so interesting about Francesco?" he asked her finally.

Sally stared at him in total disbelief. "Well, he's Italian. He talks smoothly, like he isn't afraid to mess up. He takes your interests to heart." She stared back at the couple in the corner. "I mean, he's…he's…"

"More than I ever will be?" he suggested sullenly.

"Stickers, that's not true!" she told him. He sighed, picking at his pancakes now. "Come on. You know I love you and only you."

"But what if you love him, too?" he told her.

She stared at him in surprise, until she understood. Her gaze softened, and she took hold of his arm like Marlene did last night, rubbing her temple on his arm. "You're jealous, aren't you?" she crooned.

"No, I'm not!" he said, voice a little too loud.

"Oh, Stickers, you don't have to be!" she squeaked at him. "And…you're cute when you're jealous, you know that?"

_Heh, _he thought, and smiled down at her. Maybe she does care.

"I don't know if I should say thanks for that," he told her, and both laughed gently.

Marlene stared in the direction of Radiator Springs' second couple. Noticing her stare, Francesco turned his head to see Lightning feeding Sally a bit of his pancakes.

"Did you…ever wish that would happen?" he asked her softly.

"I used to," she told him.

"'Used to'?" he repeated.

She nodded. "I gave up on love years ago. My cousin did so, too."

He cocked his head to the side. "Why give up?"

"There wasn't anyone I could handle. They're either too obnoxious, they're taken, too arrogant or crazy. Guys like that," she told him. "I'm not putting the opposite sex down, but…I never really found the perfect idiot for me."

He frowned. "'Idiot'?"

"'People do crazy things when they fall in love'," she recited a quote off a movie.

"_Have_ you ever been in love?"

She nodded. "Lightning was my first love."

"Oh?" Jealousy sparked in his heart despite the calm word.

She nodded. "Well, I did some crazy things then, you know, for Lightning. And I said to myself, 'Well, at least that quote is true.'" She shrugged.

"Did you and McQueen ever…?"

She stared at him, eyes wide and glaring as she understood. "What? No!" she told him. She looked away and shook her head. That extra mug of caffeine was getting to her. She had to start slow. "Last night…last night was my first kiss, did you know that?"

His eyes widened. "Really?"

She nodded sheepishly.

He didn't know what to say. Someone like her looked like she had many men begging for her to bed them. But then, when he met her, she hasn't even had her first kiss yet. The girls he's met had already had their first kiss, and maybe even their first time! This woman amazed him even more so at each fact she had hiding from the world.

She noticed he was staring at her like an idiot, like he wouldn't believe her. "You don't believe me, do you?"

"I'm sorry," he told her. He can afford to tell her the truth. "But I…I thought…with you being over twenty and all…." He trailed away.

She shrugged. She was mildly offended. "Do I…look like a hooker or anything?" she asked, trying to keep the offense out of her voice.

"No," he told her, unsure of how to say it. "You don't."

She nodded. She knew better than to assume he wasn't telling the truth. "Thanks."

He nodded in agreement.

Sally sighed as she rested her head on Lightning's shoulder. His arm was around her as they rested back on the booth's backrest. Both were content, just like the other day, before Francesco arrived to piss him off. Her hands claimed his, and soon, they were playing again. It was cute when they did that.

After a while, Sally called his attention.

"Yup?"

"Can I get back to work?" she murmured.

He kissed her hair. "Kiss me first," he replied as softly.

She grinned up at him before pressing her lips to his. But instead of her successfully pulling back, he pressed against her, and she smirked as they finally broke apart.

"I love you," she told him.

He smiled at her. "I love you, too."

With one last kiss and hug, she left him alone again, and he smiled after her as she pushed her way outside. He glanced at the corner table again, and blushed thickly as he found Marlene and Francesco smiling at him. He looked away, and the two at the corner table laughed.

* * *

The journalist was done fixing her article, which left her about a week and two days of nothing. But since Mr. Earlwood, her editor, told her she could have a two-week vacation, and she knew she better make the most out of it. Well, she had one stupid idea: play with Lightning and Mater in the most literal sense of the phrase.

After putting her stuff back into her room and posting a note on the door, she went to find Mater. That was a start. Usually, Lightning had nothing better to do than either bug Sally, entertaining guests, getting bugged by Francesco, doing nothing or playing with Mater.

"Heya 'Lene," Mater called as she entered his junkyard. "Whutcha doin' 'ere?"

The relatively big man was dressed in his usual brown overalls and a dusty mint green shirt. His cap was over his head, and he was leaning on his old tow truck.

"Hey, you not busy?" she told him. "Think we could find Lightning and see if we can play?"

"Oh." Mater was startled because Marlene rarely ever played with them. "Sure. Let's see if we can find him, then."

He stood, but then, Lightning entered the junkyard.

At the same time, Lightning had wondered what Mater would be doing at this time of the day. Well, he decided to check the junkyard to be sure, and found Marlene and Mater there.

"Lightning," Marlene called instantly.

"McQueen," Mater followed up, and all three chuckled in amusement at the synchronization.

"Hey guys," he said smilingly. "Marlene, what're you doing here?"

"Well, I came to find Mater, then we were supposed to come find you," she told him.

He cocked his head to the side. "For what reason?"

"Well, I've got a week and two days of free time," she told him. "May as well make the most of it."

He grinned. "Mater," he asked his friend.

"Yes?"

"Do you still have those rockets of yours?"

"Well, sure. Whutcha plannin'?"

Lightning grinned at Marlene. "Is your R8 still capable of 200 miles?"

"Yeah, why?"

Lightning grinned at both of them.

* * *

"_Signorina?_" Francesco asked the girl in blue. "Have you seen Lightning McQueen?"

The girl turned, revealing herself as Sally. "Oh, I haven't seen him since lunchtime," she said sadly.

"Where do you think he could've gone?" he asked her.

She shrugged. "For all I know, he's probably playing with Mater again," she told him, "down at the fields." She gave him some directions to the fields where the dreaded bull, Frank, lay sleeping at night and working during the day.

"Oh, and if you don't find them there, go to Willy's Butte," she told him. "You just might find Stickers there, teaching Mater to drift again."

He nodded, and set off in his F430, Yet, going off the road wasn't really the best thing, and getting grass in the undercarriage wasn't so good. And so, he just went off towards Willy's Butte, where he knew Lightning made his own circular track, loosely related to the tracks approved by NASCAR.

His hunch was right, but Lightning and Mater weren't alone. Marlene was there, racing with Lightning, with Mater to the side and watching.

The red and golden hybrid stock car was racing against a pristine silver sports car, kicking up dust as they did. As the cars neared the dreaded turn that led to the cacti patch below, Francesco stiffened, ready to race there on foot and intervene. Yet, he didn't have to, because Marlene swerved nicely.

The Italian superstar turned his own sports car to park beside Mater's tow truck, and got out to watch. The racing vehicles then drifted to a stop, and, exhilarated, the two drivers got out to communicate.

"What's the best time, Mater?" Marlene called, smiling as she leaned over the hard top of her R8.

Mater checked the stopwatches in his hands and compared times. "Er…McQueen's faster."

"Dang!" she spat smilingly as she pushed off the car.

"Told ya!" Lightning called out.

"With seven-fifty horsepower? The hell!" she told him.

He grinned at his victory over his best friend-girl as they parked by Mater.

"You know, you were right," Marlene told Mater. "Bringing that extra fuel is necessary; she's almost empty!" she called as she rounded the back of the truck. There she spotted a familiar car, then a familiar face. She smiled.

"Hey," she called.

Lightning looked around Marlene, and found Francesco grinning at his girl-best friend. "Hey, Francesco!" he called. He was too happy to actually get mad at his rival. "Did you want to join us?"

"It is okay," Francesco told Lightning. "I was just wondering what happened to you."

"Oh" was all Lightning could say.

Marlene giggled at her best friend's face. "Dragon, why are you blushing?" she chuckled.

"I'm not!" he called in frustration.

She giggled. "You are."

"Am not!" He flailed his arms.

She laughed at his reaction. "Gorgeous," she said, half to herself as she grabbed a container of gas and started pouring the stuff into the R8's tank, and was glad she was out of Francesco's way. She was tingling with anxiety as she stood by the prestigious Formula racer, and was relieved when she moved further away.

Francesco, on the other hand, was partly disappointed when she moved away, but who was he to question her actions?

Lightning moved to the back of Mater's truck, took a container, and started filling his own tank. He noted it wasn't a far drive from here, and he tipped the container back when it was only a fourth full. No sense wasting gas. He noticed Marlene had spaced out, the container in her hand already empty. He sided by her.

"The thing's gone dry, you know that?" he murmured.

She stared at him, dazed. Even after moments, she still stared at him, uncomprehending.

The blond stared back, mildly surprised at her soft gaze. What was she thinking about? He knew all too well she still thought of him that way, even if she denied it. He knew she still cared. But then, she wasn't as dazed like this.

"What are you thinking about?" he murmured.

She blinked, blushing slightly. She smiled, looking down as she shook her head and took the nozzle out of the R8's tank.

"Come on," he prodded softly, nudging her.

She nudged him back, and they returned each other's pushes until he pushed her slightly before turning to run. She dashed after him, both playing like teens again.

Mater and Francesco only looked on, the former laughing and commenting, "I dunno why those two act stupid sometimes."

The latter, on the other hand, felt jealousy creep on his skiing as he watched the two play without a care in the world. Did she still love McQueen, even after a few years? Does McQueen love her back? Given this show of friendship and affection, it was plausible.

The two, exhausted and exhilarated, returned to the cars, still pushing each other as they laughed. Marlene was having a giggling fit again, and Lightning was laughing like crazy as he listened to her laughs. He pushed her away, and she knelt on the ground, shaking as she laughed. There was no reason for them to hide their voices in the desert, and both were beside each other in laughter. She stood, still giggling, and hung on to his arm, her head on his upper arm as they stumbled to the cars.

Each second was not hilarious to Francesco, even if Mater joined in slightly. He only watched the exchange in silence and disapproval.

The two relaxed, tears streaming down their cheeks and bellies hurting, as they leaned on the R8's rear, making sure their arms were free of any metal that can damage the dark silver paint.

"Greatest laugh trip ever," she said breathlessly. "I hate you."

He laughed at that, looking at her. "So sue me," he called, and she pushed him again.

"Alright, playtime's over," Mater called. "Miss Sally is wonderin' where McQueen is." The two friends groaned in unison. "Come on; to the cars wit yuh!"

"Mater, since when did you get so parental?" Marlene asked. She was too happy to be thoroughly pissed off, though. "Is it Holley again?"

She and Lightning burst into laughter as they boarded the automobiles, engines revving as they started.

"Er, Mr. Bernoulli, you comin'?" Mater asked awkwardly.

"Oh, _si_," he told the redneck, slipping into his F430.

Soon enough, they were back in town. The cars were parked first, and Marlene and Lightning were sharing jokes and remembering stupid times together as they staggered to Flo's, successfully leaving Francesco behind. Sally poked her head out at the noise that passed through the sliding glass doors of the lobby, and found Lightning's arm slung over Marlene's shoulders, the latter's arm around his waist as they helped each other to the café. She shook her head in disapproval and rolled her eyes before hurrying to finish up so she can meet with Lightning. Francesco only trailed after the best friends, hands in his pockets.

The two settled in a booth together, calling for glasses of water, still laughing as they talked, the high of adrenaline still hanging over their heads. Marlene sighed as she had finally quenched her thirst.

"Ah, that was good," she told Lightning.

"Yeah," he replied exhaustedly.

She felt just as tired as she rested her head on the cushion. "Thanks for today," she told him, staring into his blue eyes.

"Don't mention it," he replied, returning the stare, and she just lay her head on his shoulder. His arm was then around her, and within seconds, they were out like a light.

Francesco didn't fail to notice this as he settled in Marlene's usual morning seat with a full view of the two, a mug of decaf in his hands. Sally then entered the café, and found Francesco. She moved to the table to ask where her boyfriend was.

"Right there," he growled, pointing to the couple in a booth.

Sally turned, and all she could do was gasp and stare.

"You're not hallucinating, you're not dreaming, you're not seeing things, and all that crap," Francesco told her as her lips moved. "You may sit down, or you may go."

She preferred to sit, and called for a decaf herself. "What happened?" she asked.

"They were playing," Francesco said flatly.

Sally gasped even more. _Playing_? Are they serious? "How did you know?"

"They were at the desert, playing with Mater. Racing, laughing, running around like fools." He sipped at his decaf.

She stared at him curiously, recognizing that tone. "And this concerns you in what way?"

He looked at her with relatively half-closed eyes, seeming to say 'Are you serious?' "They are my friends too, _no_?"

She only nodded silently as she grasped a glass of water.

"You're jealous."

Her head whipped back to stare at Francesco. He was staring at her, brown eyes fierce. His tone was partly accusing, partly assuming. She blinked. "How do you know?"

"The way you stare at them is very familiar," he told her. "The story on why I know is not important," he added quickly.

She understood. He was jealous, too. But she let him believe she didn't know.

"What exactly are you jealous about?" he asked. "I mean, what about them are you jealous about?"

She knew the answer immediately. "They have been best friends since he was about seven years old. She was his first love, and vice versa. How can I not be jealous?" she told Lightning's rival. "I mean, Marlene may well and still have feelings for him. She may deny them, but deep down, I know she's still hoping she can score with him."

Francesco nodded in understanding, looking away.

"And you?"

His gaze shot to hers. "You…can say I like her," Francesco told her sheepishly.

She cocked her head to the side in interest. "How so?"

"You…can say she's more than any of the other girls I've dated," he replied, staring at the peaceful face that lay on his rival's shoulder. "She's shown me what a real girl is these days."

Sally only nodded, also in understanding. Fangirls and those who want fame and fortune are so plastic and obnoxious.

"Do we wait for them?" he asked. "I have absolutely nothing to do now, really."

She smiled slightly. "No, I have work to do," she told him. "I just came by because I was worried about Stickers. So, if you don't mind, I probably have to get to work."

"Wait," Francesco called as she stood. "You said something about customers being first."

She looked away in thought. "Yes…?"

"Well?"

She stared at him. "You want me to stay?"

"As soon as you're available," he told her.

She smiled. "Alright. As soon as I'm available."

He grinned at her, and she stepped out of the café, almost dazed and thoughtful. Was he looking at her, soft and sexy? No, that couldn't be right; it was SalQueen now, and nobody else was there for her.

But how can she deny the affection Lightning showed to Marlene with his arm around her as they dozed?


	12. Chapter 12

_Yes it's late. Yes it's long. Thanks for the amazing reviews, those who have done so. :)_

_Crap, a rhyme. . Oh, well. xD I wanted to extend this chap, but I didn't want to prolong **Mere**'s wait. ^-^_

_**Lightnescoinmyheartforever**, thanks for reading! I hope you read **My Best Friend **so you can understand all that best-friend ideas, as well as the rest of the Stevenson saga *and the rest of my stories*! ^-^  
_

* * *

_**Chapter Twelve**_

That evening, she was finally finished with the third batch of paperwork, and sighed in relief.

"Finished?" a voice called.

She looked up to see Francesco there. "How long have you been there?" she asked, smiling.

He grinned back. "Oh, just now."

She stood, fixing up the desk there. "So, what have you planned again today?"

"I was thinking about going to Wheel Well," he told her. "It has been a long time since I went there."

"Oh, you're in luck: there's some special tonight that Flo and the others are sponsoring."

"Really?"

"Yeah. When things get boring, there's a cocktail party or something or other that a resident hosts at Wheel Well. Admission is free for residents and invited friends, but visitors and otherwise should pay, because they don't know if the supply of drinks or the service pay can be covered by them alone." She stared at him, scrutinizing his attire. "Aren't you going to change? I still have a while."

"Oh, sure," he told her, and went off.

She shook her head. Francesco was too at ease already to think about himself too much, and she didn't know if that was good or not.

Soon enough, she had freshened up and changed, and was out in the lobby in minutes. She was dressed in a little black dress with spaghetti straps and little gems that bordered the neckline. The skirt was more sheath than A-line, and the entire piece of clothing hugged her figure from top to bottom. She had a small pendant that hung around her neck with a small silver chain, and dangling feather earrings hung from the lobes of her ears. Although her signature color was cool blue, she went for dark eyeshadow and bright red lipstick. She may look intricate yet simple, but she was thinking about being the bad girl tonight.

It was minutes later when Francesco appeared. No, he wasn't going in a waistcoat again. No, he didn't have long sleeves on. Tonight, he was going as the bad boy, too.

Yes, he may be wearing a dress shirt again, but the difference was that he was more smart casual than he was semi-formal. Well, smart casual may not be the word for it, but was otherwise categorized the same way.

As usual, he wore straight black trousers, with same-color closed shoes. The red dress shirt had three-fourth sleeves, the buttons open but the cuffs unfolded. His shirtfront, instead of begin closed to the last clasp, was open to a point on his sternum. It wasn't so low he looked like a stud, not too high, either, that he looked so formal in his dress. Not that his hair was uncombed, but it wasn't as lain flat as it was the other night.

To save herself, she asked, "Red?"

He looked down, extending his arms slightly. "Too much?" he said, smirking at her.

She smiled back, and he approached her. "So, who are you taking over to Wheel Well tonight?"

"Oh, if she isn't available, which can be assumed," he told her, "then I should probably take you instead." He waggled his brows up and down at her.

She chuckled, blushing slightly. "But what if she is?"

He shrugged. "Maybe."

She smirked. "Maybe," she mused.

* * *

_Wakey-wakey!_ her body clock said, and her eyes fluttered open as she regained consciousness. The first thing she saw was the velvet cushion in front of her, and as she looked around, it was the weirdest place to take a nap.

_Flo's V8 Café._

She lifted her head, and noticed it was on someone's shoulder. She turned to see Lightning, still fast asleep. She glanced at her watch. It was roughly five-thirty in the evening.

At this, she shook her friend awake.

"Lightning? Lighting, it's five-thirty," she told him.

"Huh?" he gasped groggily. "Where…?"

"We're at Flo's," she told him, and straightened, tying up her ponytail again.

"Where's Sally?" he asked, scratching his eyes.

"I dunno; probably working, I guess," she told him.

"Hey, guys," Mia and Tia called, and the two looked up. "Are you both going to the cocktail party?"

Marlene's eyes widened. "I totally forgot about the party!" she told them.

"Well, you're going to have to tell us if you're going, or its admission for you," Tia told her. "So, are you going or not?"

"Heck yeah, I'm going," she told them, grinning. She turned to Lightning. "You going?"

"Yeah, if Sally is," he said, and looked expectantly at the girls with a clipboard.

"Oh, sorry, she didn't-" Suddenly, a ringtone sounded, and Mia produced her touch screen BlackBerry. "Oh."

"What? Is she coming or not?" Lightning prodded.

"She is."

His face brightened. "Really?"

"Yeah," Mia confirmed. Her tone was wrong though.

"What's wrong?" Marlene asked.

"Er, nothing," Mia said quickly, pocketing the phone. "So. It's barely thirty minutes before we go ahead and get the party started, so you guys better suit up already."

"Oh, yeah." Marlene then stood, but turned to Lightning. "You mind if I…?"

"Go ahead," he continued for her, and she smiled before dashing off excitedly.

"Is she one for the drinks?" Tia asked. "No, right?"

"Well, she told me she was experimenting," he replied, shrugging. "I suppose she wants to try Guido's specials tonight and get hungover again."

The trio laughed as he stood, and strode away towards his HQ.

Humming a little tune, Lightning picked out a pale blue sports shirt—it wasn't like he was going to a real party—and khaki trousers, and left with partly-wet hair and black shoes, wallet and phone in his pants.

Marlene, on the other hand, was in a white dress shirt and straight black pants with plain, same-color flats. Tonight, around her neck was a string of small pearls, and to match were stud earrings of the same nacre material. Her blown-dry hair was tied back, plain and simple. She had minimal make-up on, as usual, although she did wear a noticeably brighter shade of red tonight, courtesy of Mia and Tia's cosmetics.

As she met up with Lightning at the lobby, Sally was nowhere to be seen, and so was Angel.

"'Lene, have you seen Sally?" he asked.

She shook her head. "She must've gone ahead."

He nodded. "Maybe," he replied.

"Oh, did you want to drive with me tonight?" she asked.

"Sure, yeah."

"Let's go; it's a fifteen-minute drive there, plus traffic," she told him.

There was minimal traffic going to Wheel Well. Maybe it was still early; the time was just past quarter past six when they parked. They stared in the car for the time being for a private conversation.

"Light?"

"Yeah?"

"Ever thought of getting married?"

Both stared at each other. Lightning thought he could see a glimmer of sadness in her eyes; Marlene thought there was extreme surprise in his.

"Well, it probably crossed my mind at times," he said, trailing away.

"'Probably'?" she repeated.

"Okay, it has," he told her. "But I don't know if we're ready for that kind of thing yet."

She cocked her head to the side. "Why not? You both are living together now; surely you both are ready."

"Well, I don't know; the town is flourishing, she has work, I have races." He shrugged. "I mean, that's a lot to think about, you know?"

She nodded, pursing her lips slightly as she glanced at the dashboard in front of her. "Maybe." She looked at him again. "But love survives, you know, past everything."

He scoffed. "How do you know that?"

She seemed slightly hurt as she flushed lightly. She said nothing as she turned away.

"You still love me, don't you?" His voice was very assuming.

"So what if I do?" she told him, trying to keep her voice calm. "Maybe not like it was before, but…I can't help feeling what I feel, you know?"

His gaze softened. "Yeah. I know that feeling." He rested his head back, glancing up at the carpeted ceiling.

She turned to him. "Really?"

"Yeah." He looked at her. "Sally knows I still have feelings for you."

There was a painful pause, and Marlene winced slightly. She knew how hard a woman can hit when she's jealous.

"But how can she doubt anything if I've been staying with her for four years?" he continued. "I mean, I've proved just how loyal I've been, despite you coming back here for weeks at a time. Right?"

She nodded. It made perfect sense; even Sally wouldn't refute that. "You've got a point." Another pause. "But what if she thinks our stunt earlier…?"

"That stunt earlier is just between friends," he told her sternly. "All there was in it was fun. Nothing else."

"But can you explain your arm around me when we woke?" she pointed out.

He opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out. "You have a point."

"So, what do we say about that?"

"Can't…best friends be affectionate?"

"Displays like that are too good to be true," she argued.

"Okay, okay." He breathed deeply. "I…got nothing."

"…let's just go with that argument."

"Right." He glanced at the clock. "Let's go; its' almost six-thirty."

* * *

Lights. Music. Drinks. People. Four things needed for a cocktail party. In this case, it was a special cocktail hour at Wheel Well. Sponsored by Radiator Springs' residents, it was the closest to a bar night as anything else.

The announcement for this came about a week ago. It was put up on several sites associated with Wheel Well's own: the Cozy Cone, Lightning's fan page on Facebook, etc. And so, as people checked out the announcement, there were a few regulations to follow: smart casual to semiformal wear only. The time was at six-forty-five in the evening, stretching up to as late as ten in the evening.

Guido played bartender, as usual. Mia and Tia are hosts tonight while Flo sat back with Ramone. Mater awaited his friends' arrival. Sarge and Filmore were conversing as usual. Sheriff and Luigi were happy to do the admissions and attendance check at the entrance.

"Hey, McQueen!" Mater called, and approached his friend.

"Hey, Mater," Lightning clapped his friend on the back before slinging his arm over Mater's shoulder. All three walked to the counter for a first round.

Conversation wasn't much between the three of them, but people approached for pictures and autographs and offered points of random conversation. Marlene stuck with flutes of champagne and an occasional glass of wine. Lightning went with real cocktails. Mater was high enough with a few cokes. Lightning only had three rounds of tequila when a thought crossed Lightning's mind when all three were alone.

"Hey, I just noticed: Where's Sal?"

"Oh, she be over there with Mr. San Francisco," Mater told him, pointing to the other end of the counter. True enough, Sally was there, laughing with Francesco.

Lightning and Marlene froze. What were they doing together?

"Hold on bud; I gotta go for a sec," Lightning said, moving away and returning his glass to the dark marble counter.

"But McQueen—"

"Let him go first, Mater," Marlene said reassuringly, taking the redneck's wrist slightly. "I'm sure he'll be back.

"Hey, babe," Lightning crooned as he moved to Sally's side, his arm sliding around her waist as he kissed her gently. "Didn't see you at the lobby earlier."

"Well, that's because you were with Marlene again," she told him flatly, smiling sweetly.

"So?"

"So, I figured you were gong with her tonight."

He chuckled. "Sal, we've been looking forward to this for a week now."

"Well, to me, you changed your mind," she defended.

"Well, I haven't," he replied, getting annoyed.

"Hey," Francesco interrupted, and Lightning looked up. "That's my date."

"Well, she's my girlfriend," Lightning growled.

"But she agreed to go with me," Francesco shot back, standing.

"She's still my girlfriend." Lightning let go of Sally to face up to the Italian.

"It's ultimately her decision if she wants to date someone else."

"But still."

"It doesn't matter!"

"It does to me!"

Sally, now tipsy, quite enjoyed the show as she sipped on her third glass of martini. It was fun, being the object of two men's affections. She didn't stop them at any rate; she was having too much fun.

Marlene looked on as she took on a third flute of champagne, but waited to spring. Things were going to get awry if those two weren't stopped.

Francesco was tipsy, and furious for two reasons. For one, Lightning was still 'happy' with Marlene. That was self-explanatory. But for Lightning to take Sally away from Francesco, too, was a whole other matter entirely. What was McQueen trying to do, get every girl Francesco wanted for Lightning's own pleasure?

Lightning was very much the same: tipsy and pissed off, but for very different reasons. One, he was pissed because to him, Francesco was trying to steal Sally away from Lightning. Two, Sally was trying to 'score' with Francesco. Sally Carrera is Lightning McQueen's girlfriend, no-one else's. And suddenly, Francesco shows up and they're suddenly together? That can't be right!

"But what about Marlene?" Francesco interjected. "Wouldn't want her to be alone now, would we?"

"What does this have to do with Marlene?" Lightning was pretty much bewildered his rival mentioned Marlene.

"It looked like you weren't over her yet," Francesco growled. "So, why don't you run off with her first, and I'll take care of Miss Sally right here?" Francesco smirked at his American counterpart.

"Hell to the no!" Lightning roared at the last statement, and his fist connected with Francesco's jaw.

Sally's and Marlene's eyes widened. "No!" Marlene called as Sally sat by, stunned and startled. The brunette in white dashed over to split the men before anything else can happen.

Too late; Francesco swiped his fingers once over his jaw, glaring as he tasted blood in his mouth, and lunged forward at the blond driver. In a split second, both men were in their own brawl.


	13. Chapter 13

_Whew; I'm so glad I got this back from my folder, which turned into a unix executable file! . Took me about an hour or so to find out how to open the folder; crap to the difference between Apple and Windows! D8_

_At any rate, here's Ch.12. :)_

* * *

_**Chapter Thirteen**_

_Too late; Francesco swiped his fingers once over his jaw, glaring as he tasted blood in his mouth, and lunged forward at the blond driver. In a split second, both men were in their own brawl._

Everyone stopped to watch what was going on, all of them too surprised to react.

"Sally!" Marlene shrieked over the music, dashing to the lawyer's side. "Do something!"

"What can I do?" Sally replied, staring helplessly into pale green.

"Well, put down that martini for a change!" she suggested angrily. "Mater, go get Lightning; I'll try for Francesco," she growled at the tow truck driver. He nodded, and instantly jumped into the fray.

"You think you can just get at my girlfriend, can you?" Lightning hissed through clenched teeth.

"And you think you can have just about every girl you set your sights on?" Francesco growled, gripping the seemingly smaller American by the shirt.

"Francesco, that's enough!" Marlene called, and pulled Francesco back, her grip on the crook of his arms.

Surprise made the Italian release the American, and it took him seconds to react and push back. Unfortunately for her, it was enough that Francesco was nearly two times stronger than her, and with the superstar half-drunk, she was probably weaker than she thought she was now. It took almost all her strength to hold him down as he pushed against her, a low yet feral growl in Francesco's chest.

Lightning, on the other hand, only struggled as Mater held him there, hands behind Lightning's back, the stock car driver hissing for and of release. Mater wasn't of much help to Lightning, either, as that even the well-built American was more than a match for Mater.

"Francesco, I said that's enough!" Marlene snarled, louder this time, and she jerked back slightly, trying to shake him out of the hate-filled daze. At the sound of her voice, Francesco turned to face her, jaw locked in his outrage. She glared back at him. "Calm down, Francesco; you're drunk."

He looked at her for a few more moments, until he relaxed, straightening himself. "_Let me go_," he murmured.

"_Not yet,_" she replied calmly, but her hold relaxed. That was when she realized how much her muscles ached. "_Breathe first_."

He almost refused to do so, but he did it anyway out of obedience.

Lightning, on the other hand, refused to back down, glaring at his rival.

"Are you sure you want to pick a fight with him, McQueen?" Mater murmured in Lightning's ear. "Are you sure you want to pick a fight now, when other people want to enjoy themselves?" Lightning hissed like a snake, but Mater continued. "Miss Holley said to me once: if you have to get angry, get angry calmly with other people. Don't involve those who don't even know a thing about this."

Mater told the truth: a lot of people were becoming witnesses to the problem. He didn't want the problem to swell anymore than it already is.

He straightened, but retained his glare. He pulled his arms free of Mater, and strode over to the bar alone, asking Guido for a fresh glass of coke as he sat in a seat two chairs away from Sally.

Marlene released Francesco as soon as she knew it was fine to do so. She turned away to side by her friend, but Lightning only raised his hand for some alone time. She understood, and she took up another flute of champagne as she sat by Sally.

"What happened back there?" she asked the lawyer.

"I don't know," Sally replied flatly, finishing her martini. "If you'll excuse me, I have to do my duty." She then headed for the restrooms.

Marlene sighed as she sipped lightly at the sparkling wine. Did all relationships have this kind of thing?

Francesco settled in the seat by Marlene, and ordered himself a flute of champagne. He wasn't very happy about himself, or what happened.

"So," Marlene started, "care to tell me what you both were actually fighting about?"

He stared at her, thinking she was going for a rebuke. But the only thing in her green eyes was interest and curiosity.

"I heard my name in there. What happened?"

He sighed, looking away. "Nothing."

"Come on, what happened?" she prodded, moving closer so she can hear.

"Nothing," he repeated, and took a sip of his champagne, turning so he leaned back onto the counter.

"Alright," she said, shrugging, as she assumed the same position. Maybe reverse psychology will work on him, just as any other person does.

"Okay, I admit I'm a little jealous," he told her softly.

She blinked. "Jealous of what?"

"Jealous of McQueen."

Lightning glanced up at the mention of his name, and saw Francesco and Marlene talking. Now this should be fun, he thought, and strained to listen.

She looked at him again. "For what reason?"

"He takes every girl for himself," he said flatly. "You, for example."

Her eyes widened. What was he talking about? How did she get into this mess?

"I mean, he already has Miss Sally, and just earlier today you were in his arms." Francesco sighed, glancing down at the sparkling wine. "If you know what I mean."

"I'm sorry, I don't know what you mean." She wanted him to explain. Not that she didn't know, but she had to be sure.

He looked at her gently. "What I mean is, he takes all the pretty girls out there," he told her, staring outward to the crowd. "You. The twins Mia and Tia. Sally. I'm not sure if I know anyone who knows Lightning and hasn't fallen for him before."

She blushed slightly. "You think I'm pretty?" she squeaked, almost happily.

He looked at her incredulously. "You mean you don't know?"

"Not from you," she replied, looking down.

"Well, it's true," he told her. "As I said, you're unlike any other girl I've met, remember?" He smiled at her as she looked up at him. "All the girls I've met are the same: beautiful, sexy, great company,-ahem-Catholic." She chuckled at the last part, but nonetheless listened seriously. "But there are a few things they lacked of you: you're smart, you have a sense of humor, you know where to draw the line, you care." His eyes were as soft and sweet as his tone. "_I've never found a girl like you, do you know that?_" he told her. "_And I don't really want you to leave_."

_Crap,_ Lightning said. _I just hate it when I can't understand Italian_.

Her lips popped open slightly. What was he trying to say here?

"Are you drunk again?" she asked, skeptical. "Because I'm not believing any of this until you say so."

He didn't laugh. "I'm serious, Marlene," he told her. "I really am." He lifted himself off the counter, sitting straight. "_I really like you, Marlene. I swear I do._" She blushed thickly as he continued. _"Not that I'm taking things too fast, but I'd like to ask you one thing: will you like me back?_"

Although she was afraid to smile at him, she did. "I hope you didn't take me wrong earlier today," she told him, staring at the hand the covered hers. "I really was just playing with Lightning." She glanced back, biting her lip slightly. "If you think I still like Lightning that way, sure that's true. I'll give you that," she added nervously as his gaze started to sadden. "_But in the three years, four months we've spent since I lost him, I don't remember the feeling being as sweet as when I'm with you._"

_Merda_.

He should've seen this coming. It was his turn to stare at her in surprise.

"_So yes, I like you, too._" Her gaze flickered away shyly before she glanced back.

He knew the euphoria of a high, the feeling when you're going down a roller-coaster, or the joy when you've won. He knew all that by heart. But no event, no word, _nothing_ can compare to the ecstasy he's feeling right now.

He smiled at her, and she smiled back. "_To, erm, us?_" he proposed, raising his glass.

She chuckled slightly. _"To __us,"_ she agreed. She touched her flute to his, and a slight ringing sound was heard that was the cue for them to bring the brims to their lips.

Lightning rolled his eyes._ That went well_. He couldn't understand a word they're saying, but they must've reached an agreement and were happy about it. He turned to his coke again, and finished the thing before trying out a coupe of champagne.


	14. Chapter 14

_**Pancake: **__Oh, honey, I'm so sorry about that perception of yours. I think I'll fix that tho, near the end of this story. *hehe evil ain't I?* _

_Also, it makes sense. Sally certainly __**is**__ a great gal to be with, as a girl-friend or otherwise. x3 Marlene is more outgoing than most, and is just as, say, 'humble' as Sally is. So it makes sense that Francesco would like both girls, who are, unfortunately, in, say, 'cahoots' with Lightning. x3 So it's pretty much making sense to me. :)_

_Finally a positive review! xD I have to admit, I took those reviews of your personally, __**anon**__, which is probably why I changed. O.o xD And as part of your encouragement for Marlene/Lightning fluff, the end should contribute to that. …*evil grin here?*_

_O.o I hadn't noticed that this story now has more reviews than __**Italian Love**__. o.O …awesome. :megustamucho:_

* * *

_**Chapter Fourteen**_

The night dragged on. Conversation amongst strangers and friends alike ensued. People had come and gone, but residents and invited friends took the advantage of the opportunity to drink.

Although Lightning wanted to succumb to drink, he wasn't allowed to do so after what happened. He was still upset at everything else.

Francesco and Marlene were quite happy, talking with loyal patrons of Formula Racer and Cars Today. As tentative strangers found Francesco to be happy again, more came to talk with them, even if Francesco was talking in third person as a result of his partial tipsiness. Although that was so, both were tempered by the sweet, sparkling taste of champagne.

Sally was still pretty much upset, and instead resolved to stick with drink. Not that she had nothing to do with Lightning; she just didn't feel like confronting him. She settled with talking to Mia and Tia as they took a break, but an infuriating sight caught her attention as she approached the bar.

Francesco's arm was around Marlene's waist.

Drunkenness made her rash, and she surged forward. Her palm connected to skin, and everyone turned at the crack.

"You have no right!" Sally shrieked. "You've no right to steal my date!"

Marlene rubbed the skin of her cheek as she winced. Francesco was aghast. Lightning, who turned to watch, immediately felt sheer rage rise in him. But this wasn't the moment. Not yet.

"Steal? You left!" Marlene spat, and pushed Sally away roughly as she stood. "You didn't care about your date when they fought!"

The lawyer had stumbled back wards a few paces, fighting to balance on her stilettos. "I had no choice!"

"You could have chosen Lightning!" Marlene hissed.

"I didn't want to lose my date!"

Everyone gasped at the truth she so hidden perfectly: she cared about Francesco more than she did Lightning.

But Marlene wasn't going to stop. "I thought you were Lightning's girlfriend? Why didn't you go with him?"

"Because you were going with him!"

Marlene shook her head. "We looked for you!"

"He went with you anyway!"

"Only because he needed a ride."

"Nonetheless!"

"So you don't care about him, then?" Marlene asked, folding her arms over her chest.

"If you care so much about him, then why don't you become his girlfriend instead?" Sally called out. "He seems to be more interested in doing things with you than with me!"

A few rolled their eyes. It looked like the same situation all over again: two of the same sex fighting over someone of the opposite gender.

Marlene was irritated that Sally was accusing her of stealing Lightning, and tipsiness and anger drove the journalist to go against the word she had clung to for years; at least, unconsciously at that moment.

"Sally, he's planning to marry you!" she spat, then instantly slapped her hands over her mouth as soon as she realized it.

A lot of people's eyes widened in surprise, including Lightning's, Francesco's and Sally's.

"Marlene," Lightning called, partly in anger.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to tell her!" she apologized quickly. "She was accusing me so much I panicked and—oh, Lightning, I'm so sorry!" She started crying in her guilt and frustration, and Lightning's arms encircled his girl best friend.

"I know she is," he told her as he rubbed her back gently. "Which is why I don't think I'm going to push through with it."

Marlene looked up at him in confusion. Sally was too stunned to reply, but Francesco took the words right out of her mouth. "Why not?"

"Because I value my best friend," he growled, glaring at Sally.

"More than me?" Sally squeaked.

"I never thought it possible, but yes." There were gasps in the background. "You told us that you didn't want to lose your date, yes? Well, I suppose you didn't think that you'd lose your boyfriend, either." He then turned to Marlene, trying to comfort her.

It was seconds before Sally could reply. "But…But Stickers—"

"And don't call me 'Stickers' just yet," he snarled at the lawyer.

"But I—"

"If you really did love me, you wouldn't shirk work for Francesco. You would've waited for me earlier tonight. You wouldn't think that I still love Marlene that way, which I don't." He shook his head. "You did al these, Sally. I can't believe how much has happened in three days but…to me, what you're doing isn't right." He blinked once, trying to stop the tears from being shed. He can't break now; not when he needs strength the most. "I don't know if you're loyal to me anymore, Sally. It's like…it's like you're betraying me for no reason at all. And do you know how that feels?"

He shook gently, and pushed Marlene slightly to the side so he can face Sally fully. "I don't want to be cast off, shrugged away, or any of that crap," he said slowly, breathing deeply. He had to think now. "I don't want to be with a girl that takes me that way. I'd go for Marlene, but I'm kidding myself when I say I'll love her for the rest of my life."

Marlene only nodded as she blew into a napkin.

"So if you'll excuse me, I'd like to enjoy the rest of cocktail hour." With that, he sat facing the bar, and asked Guido for a round of something light.

Sally didn't feel too good right now. A lot of things were going on in her mind shed as confused herself. But all led to one thing she was denying: Lightning just told her to leave him alone. He never told her that, unless he was dressing or unless he had a surprise for her or he had to hide something from her. It was always in affection and playfulness. But this time, he was pretty serious about leaving him alone. She turned to walk out, and just rested in the fresh night air, looking out towards the town, as she took a breather from everything.

Marlene felt pretty sorry about Sally. She knew how hard it was, being put down by someone you loved. But she didn't do anything; Sally was drunk and sad. At best, she might get an earful of profanity. At worst, she didn't even want to imagine it.

"Mia," Lightning called, and one of the twins moved to his side. "Can you do something for me?" he asked.

"Sure."

He leaned closer to murmur. "I want you to keep an eye on Sally. She's drunk, and I don't' want to get her into an accident in case she wants to change her mind."

Mia nodded. "Gotcha. Can I tell Tia?"

"Go ahead; just don't let anyone tell Sally herself."

Mia nodded once, and went off.

Just because Lightning told Sally to back off for a while doesn't mean he doesn't care. He still does. So much. That was why it hurt for him to see her going off with someone else, why it struck him so hard she thought he didn't love her anymore because of his girl-best friend. She looked like she didn't bother to return the affection he's given her.

Marlene wasn't in the mood for anything else now that the happy air she had was broken. She just sat there, trying to enjoy a can of Dr. Pepper as a substitute for champagne as she leaned over the counter. She sighed helplessly.

"Anything wrong?" Francesco asked out of concern.

"I want to go home."

He blinked. "Don't you want to enjoy the rest of the night?"

"No thanks," she told him, and ordered a can to go. She stood, and went over to her best friend. "Think you can handle yourself?" she asked, hand on his shoulder.

"Sure," he replied, looking up at her. "I'm sorry for what happened earlier."

She smiled slightly. "I suppose it was bound to happen."

He smiled back. "You're going? Already?"

"Yeah. It's far too sad for me here; I think I'll go watch a little more back at the motel."

He shrugged. "Alright," he replied, and she pressed her lips to his temple.

"Don't get into more trouble," she warned him.

He only laughed as he pressed his head to her shoulder affectionately. "I won't."

She smiled, and after a good-natured rub on the back, she turned to leave.

"Hey, wait," Lightning called, and she turned back. "I…can you help me out with something?"

"Why, sure," she told him, then eyed him skeptically like she did with Francesco. "Are you drunk?"

"Maybe not as drunk as earlier; someone got me a little something." He grinned at her.

She rolled her eyes. "Okay, what do you need help with?" she asked.

He stared past Marlene. "Hey, Francesco," he called. The Italian looked at Lightning, brows raised. "Can I borrow Marlene for a while?"

Marlene gave him a good-natured and mock-offended slap, and he snickered. Francesco seemed offended, too, but blushed thickly. "Well?" Lightning prodded.

"Er, okay," Francesco said awkwardly, and Lightning took Marlene's hand to lead her out to the parking lot.

Sally heard voices and turned to see Lightning with Marlene. The duo was between the R8 and a black Miata that had parked beside the dark silver coupe. She could barely hear what they were saying though, but walked a wide arc as she watched with interest. Neither Francesco, Sally or the best friends saw each other.

"Now, I'm still thinking about proposing to her," he told his friend in a hushed voice. "Don't…don't ruin it again, alright?"

She nodded sheepishly. "Sorry about that."

"Yes, well, whatever on that, the damage is done." He cleared his throat, shifting his weight nervously on both feet as he took her hands in his. "Alright, so here's the thing: I'm planning to get the ring tomorrow or the next day or whenever I can, but I need you to play witness to my engagement. I don't' want anyone doubting anything ever again," he told her. "Bring Francesco or a camcorder if you want; I don't' care. I just need evidence. But respect the privacy, yes?"

She nodded, smiling up at him as she knew where this was going.

He smiled back down at her in reply. "So, what I'm going to do now with you is to practice."

She chuckled. "Practice?" she repeated.

"Yes, practice, whatever, I don't care." His voice was still low enough for her to hear. She threw her head back slightly in glee, and he shrugged it away.

"Aren't you going to speak from the heart?"

"You know me, I like practicing things," he told her. "I'll make up that speech when I can. All I need for you to do now is to tell me how great I can look at you."

She chuckled. "Alright."

He shifted his weight again. It was kind of weird to be doing this to his best friend, but doing it with Mater was _way_ worse. He blinked, then smiled at her, blue eyes implying love and affection. That was the moment he realized she looked so much like Sally in the dark.

Her eyes were green. Her hair was dark. And the dim of the night made the resemblance ever closer to Sally's physical appearance. This realization only made the look on his face even more intense.

She stared in partial awe at him at the strength of his blue eyes. He'd not looked at her that way in years, and it was kind of relieving he still had that gleam of affection she knew so well. She shook her head slightly, then looked away.

"Anything wrong?" he asked, smile fading as he bowed his head in an effort to meet her gaze again.

She breathed deeply. "Heh," she chuckled slightly. "I didn't see that coming," she breathed, smiling at him.

"Now, I need you to…react as closely as any girl would, alright?"

She nodded. "Alright." She swallowed, blinking. "So, what's the surprise?" she said sweetly.

He eyed her smilingly. "Very close," he told her, and she laughed. "Anyway, erm, Sally, I'd like to ask you something."

Marlene rolled her eyes, and he stamped his feet slightly. "Just go with the flow," he growled smilingly through gritted teeth. "It's been years since we met, a few since we…announced ourselves as boyfriend and girlfriend, and all that crap," he added, because he knew it was going to be awkward if he made his speech now, and to Marlene no less. She chuckled. He dropped to the ground, hands still holding hers, his gaze unwavering. "Sally Carrera," he said as softly as he can, "will you marry me?"

Unfortunately for them, Sally overheard the last part, and gasped in shock. He was proposing to his best friend, who he just denied his love for. He was a liar. A big, fat one at that. He told the audience that he didn't care about her that way, and now he's proposing to the girl in question? Sally fumed as she watched. What would she say?

Marlene chuckled to a laugh for effect. "Yes!" she squeaked, "Yes!" she called out.

Sally gasped. She knew it. She knew he was going to fall for her anyway. But she was gracious enough to let him go. She stalked back to Wheel Well, frustrated and resentful.

He stood. "You didn't have to be so—ouch!" he called out as she leapt to hug him tightly. "Alright, come on, stop it."

"You told me to do it for effect," she told him poutingly as she let go of him.

He slapped her lightly on the upper arm as they walked towards Wheel Well.

"Ouch!" she called, and reached to slap him again, but he avoided it cleanly.

"Heheh," he grinned, and let her slap him anyway. They reached the bar again, and Marlene satisfied herself with a third flute of champagne.

Sally narrowed her eyes at them as she sat by Mia and Tia not three seats from Francesco's other side.

"Are you sure?" Tia murmured uneasily.

"Why don't you ask him yourself?" Sally growled, and the trio watched. Apparently, Sally had told them about it.

"What was that about?" Francesco asked as Marlene approached.

She barely stifled a guffaw, and bit her lip to stop herself as she tried to regain her dignity. "He asked me to marry him."

Lightning slapped her lightly as she cracked up in front of the men. Francesco had an initial burst of anger, but it was mixed with curiosity. Why was she laughing at such a serious matter?

She was laughing so hard she could barely recover. "I should tell him, yes?" she asked her friend after a small while, wiping a tear from her eyes.

"Go ahead; just don't tell him to spoil it." He took a swig of his glass of coke.

She brought her lips to Francesco's ear, and murmured a brief summary on what happened outside. He looked at her incredulously, and she nodded. She raised her palms for innocence, the stem of the flute between her forefinger and thumb.

"True story," she told him.

Francesco then looked at Lightning, who smiled. "Are you serious?"

Lightning nodded, and the Italian gave Lightning a pat on the back. "Congratulations and good luck."

Lightning rolled his eyes as Francesco and Marlene laughed in unison. "Best of luck then, friend," Marlene said, raising her glass at him. Francesco did the same, and the duo sipped at the sparkling wine.

Lightning raised his own glass, a little late, but it didn't matter. He sipped at the carbonated drink, thinking how happy Sally would be if she knew. If only she would understand that he loved her so much, then she would be happy.

* * *

_Ooh, what's this? A turn of events? I wonder what Sally would do next._


	15. Chapter 15

_**anon: **__Yeahh, well, I'm that way, always pleasing other people. xD I think it's because of my social environment. O.o Thanks tho, for enlightening me. ^-^_

* * *

_**Chapter Fifteen**_

"So, who're you going with tonight?" she asked him.

"I think I'm going with the rest of them in the carpool. I heard Holley came in a taxi, and Sally had gone home with Tia earlier." Marlene only nodded as he turned to her again.

Most of the people had retired to the motels to rest, some had to return home early. But some still wanted to enjoy drinks, and stayed in groups, talking in now-soft but engaged conversation. Lightning and Marlene were still seated by the counter, facing the bar as they tried getting the most out of the last call.

"What about you?"

She shrugged. "My R8's out there."

"No, I meant, who's going with you?"

She didn't look at Lightning, but he swore he saw something wistful in that pale green gaze. "No idea."

He pat her on the back. "Listen to the radio; it helps."

"At ten-thirty in the evening with love songs in my ears? No thanks," she replied. "I'd rather listen to her engine purr."

He sighed. She really was hell-bent on either being in love or just being single one hundred percent. Love songs are out of the question.

"Thanks for earlier tonight," he told her. She nodded quietly, then went off to find Ramone, who was driving.

"_Ciao_."

"_Ciao_," she replied as she looked up.

"I heard you had a free spot in your car."

She smiled.

* * *

"That was the awesomest party I've seen," Mia randomly told Holley as they approached the lobby. "Are you staying tonight?"

"Oh, yes," she told the younger girl. "Second floor."

Mia grinned. "Staying with Mater tonight?"

Holley gave Mia a good-natured slap, and Mater then popped right behind them with Holley's stuff. "Whutcha talking' 'bout?" he asked the two.

Mia snickered as she went off, and Holley rolled her eyes as she tucked her hand at the crook of Mater's arm. "Let's go."

As they quietly walked down the hall of the third floor, one turn of Holley's head made them stop.

"Holley, what's wrong?" Mater said softly, and turned his head to see two people on the west wing, their backs to the elevator. Holley tugged Mater back, so only their heads were poking out of the corner.

"Thanks for driving tonight."

"My pleasure."

It was awkward again as they stood there, holding each other's hands. It's been a few years since both had felt this smitten.

"So, what are you going to do about McQueen, now that he's going to be engaged to Miss Sally?" he asked her softly.

She shrugged, looking down. "I move on," she said simply. "I mean, I have a lot of life to go, right, some…fifty years? I can't just go and mope because my best friend's going to get married before I will." Her fingers tightened unconsciously around his.

He smiled slightly at the sudden change of pressure in his hands. "Do you think there's anyone else for you out there?"

Instantly, hurt washed over her, and she swallowed, barely avoiding an audible choke of shock and hurt. She winced, but made it look like a thoughtful narrowing of eyes. "I…I don't know. I've never really found anyone else," she said slowly.

His heart leapt. She was available. "But…what about McQueen?"

She shrugged. "He has Sally now, remember?" She refused to look up at him, but she did out of courtesy's sake, but she didn't smile.

He only nodded. He let the tension settle before anything else. "Did you have a choice for yourself?"

She blinked. "Choice?"

"A…man you wanted."

She frowned. "Maybe."

"Oh. …who?"

He sounded interested. What did this mean? She was bewildered by how serious and how personal he was getting.

"Er…someone." She didn't want to admit it was _him_ she wanted. No, not when he was trying to push her away.

Yet, that wasn't the case, and he felt a pang of hurt. "Can you…tell me?"

She blinked, raising a brow at him. "Do you really want to know?"

"_Si_, I mean, if you want to tell me." She had a right to keep secrets, after all.

She glanced over her left shoulder to glance at the door, then back. "Did you want to come in?" He looked at her inquiringly. "I mean, the conversation might stretch on all night, if you're going to ask why I like this man."

He cocked a brow. "Oka-ay," he replied awkwardly, and she turned to open the door to the luxury hotel room. Both entered, and the door clicked shut.

"Why are we spying on them?" Mater asked softly.

"Because" Holley told him, and pressed her ear to the wooden panel. Mater only rolled his eyes before doing so, too.

"So, who is this man you've chosen?" Not that he really wanted to know, but he did it out of courtesy, too.

She sat by him on the bed, her eyes not meeting his. She bit her lip slightly before speaking. "That would be you." She winced. This was harder than admitting it to herself.

His eyes widened. "What?"

"You heard right," she replied solemnly. "After all these years, Francesco, there hasn't been a man like you."

He couldn't believe his ears as she continued.

"_You're sweet and attentive. You're not as obnoxious or as arrogant as others I've met. You're not trying to impress me—or at least, that's what I've seen. You may like attention most of the time, but you can respect others just as much._" She finally looked up at him, bright green eyes perfect in the warm white light. "_I—_"

She stopped, but only because his lips were on hers. Not that he wanted her to stop, but he wanted to keep those ideas of hers a pleasure to be heard in the future.

Her eyes slid shut as he pulled her close, and he sighed in ecstasy as her lips moved with his. "_You were right_," he whispered as he lifted his lips from hers momentarily, and his awed brown gaze met her clouded green one as he smiled. "_The conversation will stretch on all night._"

She chuckled, and pressed her lips to his again.

"Crap," Holley cursed softly. "I hate it when I can't understand Italian."

Mater only chortled slightly. "Come on Holley; I'm tired."

The agent smirked, and pecked his cheek once before she led him to the room beside Marlene's.

* * *

After a little more talking with Sarge and the others, Lightning returned to his HQ. But as he tried to open the doorknob, it was locked.

"Sal?" he called as he knocked. "Sally? You in there?" As there was no answer, he figured she was still with Tia, and he opened the door with his own home key. "Sally?"

As he entered the kitchen, he found Sally there, slumped against a chair's backrest, a bottle of something in front of her. Horror creeped on him like a panther waiting in the shadows.

"Sally?" he called softly, as if she were a ghost or something, as he walked closer. As he rounded to face her though, her gaze was fixated on the bottle's label, eyes blank and lifeless. It was like she was dead: frozen, eyes open and unbreathing.

"Sally?" he called a little louder, fear in him now. He took her hand, and she turned her head away from him slowly, like she was a zombie.

"Sal, come on," he told her. "It's me, Lightning." He swallowed. "Stickers, remember?"

"You told me not to use that name anymore," she said in a low voice that scared him ever more.

"Sal, I was upset then," he said. "I still want you to use that name."

She looked at him, head flicking lightning fast. Her eyes were scrutinizing but still blank. "Really? Shouldn't _she_ use that name?"

"She?" he repeated, totally bewildered.

"Marlene," she spat, irritated now.

He frowned. "Why should she use that name? It's yours to use and yours only!"

"I saw you propose to her, Lightning," she hissed at him. "I saw her jump up and down, screaming 'yes'." She turned away. "I can't believe you lied to me."

"Lied?" Anger made him snarl. She didn't understand. "Sally, why would I lie to you?"

"Because you love her!" she spat back, and stormed out of her seat. "You love her, and you know it!"

"Sally, what's gotten into you?" he asked, and took her wrists. "I don't love her!"

"Yes, you do!" She spat each word out at every struggle she made against the racer. "I saw you! I saw you out there, beside her R8! You proposed to her!"

"I did not! Just listen to me!" he told her.

"No! I will not listen to you anymore!" Finally, she jerked out of his hold. "You've filled my head and heart with lies, but no more! I will not be your girlfriend from this moment on, no matter what happens!"

The pang of heartbreak hit him for the first time in his life, and it wasn't fun. Now he knew how Marlene felt when he shrugged her off. He knew how much it hurt for her to see him every day, and know that he will never be hers. Tears blurred his vision, and streaked down his cheeks in the dim light.

"Sally—"

"Francesco never filled my mind with lies," she choked out. "He's a better man than you are, and will always be a better man than you ever will be!" She started sobbing, her face in her hands. "Go away, McQueen!" she shrieked as she glared at him. "Go away, and never talk to me ever again!"

The amount of hurt she was inflicting on his heart was…blinding. To him, there were no words. He only staggered to his room limply, packed a few things, and left for the Cozy Cone. With any luck, he'll have a luxury room upstairs.

To his surprise, Angel was still there. It was eleven-thirty in the evening, and usually she was in bed by now. But not tonight. She must've had too much sugar or something.

"Angel," he called after freshening up. His voice sounded empty, lifeless even. "I'll need a room."

The girl stared at him for a few moments as he moped slightly before making the arrangements. She quietly handed him a key, and he nodded his thanks before heading to the second floor. As he stepped out of the lift, he heard some giggling in Marlene's room, then a soft hum he barely recognized as a speaking voice. He pressed his ear to the wooden wall, and heard something he's heard in his nights, yet something he has never ever heard before.

He turned away. Just…just no.

As he entered the luxury room, he locked the door. He threw his stuff onto a chair and laid down on the bed. Suddenly, the weight of everything else crashed down on him, and he slept with the covers wet.


	16. Chapter 16

_Wow, __**Mere**__, your review was awesome. OwO I don't really know how much longer I'm going to do this; I've barely a week of work to go. xD But I promise a cliché proposal! xDD_

* * *

_**Chapter Sixteen**_

Lightning awoke to a warm yet late Saturday morn. A little warm for October. He yawned, and found himself still in last night's clothes. That was the only thing needed to set him off again.

It was a long while before he stopped shaking like a leaf stirred in the wind. He picked up a box of tissues and blew his nose. He breathed deeply as he sat on the bed. He wasn't in the mood for anything, but he knew he had to take a bath. But as soon as he went to the bathroom, he headed for the bowl and retched, stomach tightening as his tongue registered a foul taste. It was all mostly drink though. It continued even when he was in the shower, all up to the point it was just bile.

As he continuously waited for the next wave of spasms, he remembered how Sally would stand there worriedly with a glass of water and a towel in her arms when he'd gotten drunk with the guys the night before. She would help him around, and take care of him once he was well enough to stay in bed. She would try weaving in work with caring for him, and at night or even in the late afternoon, she would be quite exhausted, and she would sleep beside him into the night. Oh, how he missed that now.

He left the bath with just a towel, his shirt and jeans on his arm. He would go for his shoes later. He dressed in fresh clothes—a simple shirt and pants would do—and left with the door locked and the key in his pockets, his hair still wet.

Sally was already up and at 'em long before Lightning had, already well enough to get to work in the lobby. Lightning found her there, working with Angel and new guests.

"Hi, welcome to the Cozy Cone Motel!" he heard her say happily as she smiled at the incoming family, particularly waving at the little girl, who shyly hid behind her father.

How Lightning wished he and Sally would be like that someday: a family, with maybe a pretty baby girl or a brave son with them as they traveled around the US and toured parts of the world. how he wished she would be willing to be his wife, to be the mother of his children, the only one to take care of him for the rest of his life.

He crossed the lobby, and his golden hair caught Sally's gaze. She looked on with contempt. She had nothing more to do with him now that he was engaged to his best friend and his first love.

In the last two years and four months of of her life she spent with Lightning McQueen, she had dreamed of becoming more than his girlfriend. She wanted to be his partner in life, too. But seeing as how things had gone last night, there wasn't much hope now, was there, that she would be the one to carry his firstborn?

Suddenly, their gazes met in a flash, and withheld for a few moments before he turned away angrily. She was the one with the problem; she should be the one to apologize, not him. She assumed he was going to marry his best friend. She assumed he had proposed last night. But was there a ring on Marlene's finger to prove it?

He trudged on across the road to Flo's, and instantly glanced at the front right corner of the café. But, oddly enough, she wasn't there.

He glanced at the clock on the wall just near the cashier. It was nine in the morning. She is never still asleep after eight.

Seconds of searching offered him results: she was sitting in a booth. Not that it was odd, but in the last few days, she had declared the corner table hers.

As usual, she was sipping on a mug of decaf. But she was leaning a little. Wait, leaning? He made his way to the counter right across the café, his gaze still on her, and as his gaze evaded the backrest of the couch in front of her, he found she was with Francesco, enjoying the morning together.

Lightning's heart wrenched at the sight of her sitting there quietly, her head on Francesco's shoulder. That should be him and Sally like that this morning, but instead, she was working and he was up late. He sighed as he settled on a seat by the counter.

"Heya, Lightning," Flo called in her usual accent. "Anything I can get you?"

"The usual, Flo, please?" he said solemnly.

The older woman nodded, and came back with his morning cup. He nodded his thanks and started sipping at the decaffeinated beverage.

"No need to pry, but is there something wrong?" Flo asked. "Talk to me honey, if you need to get something off your chest."

"Naw, I'm good, Flo, thanks for that," he told her, and smiled sadly. "I don't really want to talk about it."

She nodded, and pat him gently before moving away. It was Tia's turn to approach him.

He looked at her, almost expectantly, as she stood there, trying to form the words. "She…she ranted as we got home," she told him, rubbing her arm. "You aren't serious, are you, about proposing to Marlene? Because she went in with Francesco hand in hand."

He nodded. He was getting more and more startled about Marlene more and more. "I'm not serious. She don'ts even have an engagement ring."

Tia nodded. "Okay."

"Have you told anyone?"

"My sister so far," she told him. "I told her to shut up about it until I've talked to you about it."

He nodded again. "Thanks, Tia." He pat her elbow gently as he smiled at her. She blushed thickly, and he felt slightly amused someone still liked him. "Think you can tell Mia to shut up until I can figure out what happens next?"

She nodded. "Alright." She almost turned, and opened her mouth to speak. "What are you going to do about Marlene?"

He blinked, then shrugged. "It's their life, Tia. I'm sure she'll be fine."

Tia seemed remotely worried, but only nodded. He thought he could understand, because Marlene was one of the closest the twins ever had to a big sister since the three first met, and the two would be worried Marlene would 'move out'. But that wasn't really the case. "Francesco Bernoulli?"

He chuckled slightly, knowing about famous racers. "He's better for her than anyone else I know, Tia; she'll be fine."

Tia blinked, then smiled. "Think she'll have fun?"

His lips widened to a big grin and he chortled once. "I'm sure this will be the most fun she's had in years."

Tia grinned, too, and moved away to attend to a customer.

Lightning watched Tia go to and from tables, and when she was free, she moved to where Marlene was sitting. She jabbed a thumb at him, and as Marlene's head popped out of the couch's backrest's side and Francesco's own head above, Marlene beckoned her best friend forward. He blinked, and strode over to sit opposite her.

"What do you want?" he asked.

"You look like you could use some cheering up," she told him as she sat straight. "What happened?"

He sighed. "Sally saw us last night."

That one statement alone explained everything, and she sighed. "So, what do we do?" she asked.

"I don't know," he told her sadly. "I don't even know if I'm supposed to go on with the proposal."

"Lightning," she called, and he turned to her again. "Do you really love Sally?"

"Of course I do," he retorted. "Why do you think I'm marrying her?"

"Then you should be able to convince her that it's her you're proposing to, not to me." He opened his mouth to speak, but she continued. "I know it's very hard to convince a girl like her, and all that crap, but the hard truth is, she's not happy." His eyes widened at her. "Yeah, she isn't happy. I met her in the lobby earlier, and when I said hello, she just started…telling me off. It was scary," use added, and shuddered slightly. "She kept telling me things like 'back off' or 'go ahead and live your miserable life, stealing someone's boyfriend'." She sighed, rubbing her temples. "I don't know if I'll ever get over that so long as I'm alive." She breathed before continuing. "Anyway, you'd do anything, absolutely anything, to keep her happy, even if it means leaving her if she wants someone else."

"But what can I do? She won't even talk to me!"

"Then convince her to do so!" Marlene snapped angrily. "You're Lightning McQueen! You can handle anything!" she told him. "So why can't you handle Sally Carrera?"

He bowed his head. "You're right," he told her. "Maybe I'm not Lightning McQueen."

"Lightning, look at me," she told him, and his blue eyes met her green ones. "I met a boy seventeen years ago. I knew him to be brave. He took on anything the other boys dared him to, except if he knew it would kill him. He grew to a formidable man, a risk-taker." She slammed her hands on the table as she stood. "Where is that boy, Lightning? Where is the Lightning McQueen that takes risks?"

"Some help you are," Lightning grumbled as he looked down.

She settled back down, looking at him in disbelief. "I…I don't believe you. You're just going to give up that easily? Is that it?" He glared at her, and she crossed her arms. "Lightning, come on. I know you can do this." He sighed, and bowed his head again. She shook her head, stood, and reached across the table so she can tip his head up with her fingers under his chin. "You're the only one Sally's heart can listen to," she told him softly. "Your voice and the words from your heart holds the combination to the gates of her conscience. Just at least talk to her in a grand moment, will you?"

Best friends stared at each other for a long while, until he sighed, looking away.

To Marlene, this was a sign he was really giving up. She sighed, too, and sat down again, suddenly sullen. There could be nothing she could say that would convince Lightning's heart now.

"Marlene?"

She glanced up. "Yeah?"

"Think you can help me pick out a ring?"

* * *

The day went on as usual. She didn't see Lightning. She didn't see Francesco or Marlene, either. Actually, nobody came to see her, as usual. And that kind of made things much, much worse.

She felt despondent whenever she was on break. She didn't feel like she should live in McQueen's HQ; this was his home, after all. But this was the last thing she had the opportunity to use that reminded her of him.

Last night, she cried so much at everything. The scent of his shampoo tainted his pillow. The warm sheets reminded her of the warmth they shared. The colors of the rooms told her how much they agreed on a lot of things. The two-seater dining set in the kitchen made her recall a few of the many times she's shared sweet moments and mealtimes with him. Even if she knew he wanted to spend his life with someone else, she didn't want to let him go.

Maybe this was what Marlene felt like every time she saw Lightning, too. It hurt her heart the way claws hurt on skin.

She didn't really want him to go, to tell one the truth. But she couldn't accept the fact he had just proposed to someone else, someone he hasn't spent nights with, someone he hasn't shared kisses with. She just couldn't let him go.

* * *

They drove to Phoenix that day, taking Lightning's sleek black 760i. Initially, Francesco was pretty much adamant that he would sit with Marlene. But Marlene deserved to be in front, and it was, after all, Lightning's car. So, after an argument, discussion and agreement, all three agreed that Marlene would drive Lightning's beloved 7 series BMW, and Francesco would be on the passenger's side, which left Lightning to sit back in the rear. Lightning had texted Tia he'd be out for the day, and to tell everyone else not to worry.

"You know, I never really realized it was so big here," he told them as he inspected the rear seats.

"Yeah," Marlene told him. "I suppose it is bigger than the 5 series."

His eyes widened. "You've had a 5 series?"

She shook her head. "Nope. Margo's dad has an old 5 series, circa 1991. Nice midsize executive. But this," she gestured to the entire car, "a full size luxury, wow." She chuckled. "Never really realized you'd own a luxury car."

"Well, I already have a racing engine, and Sal has her Porsche, so we agreed on a 7 series," he informed her. He shrugged.

She chuckled. "Something to slow you down?"

He grinned. "Maybe."

Marlene chuckled. "Nice."

Along the way to Phoenix, conversation wasn't much with Lightning; most of the conversation in the car was between Marlene and Francesco, mostly about nothing much: from old memories to opinions on various matters in modern society. But maybe it was because both Marlene and Francesco had already talked so much with Lightning individually that there really wasn't much to talk about. But that didn't necessarily mean there was absolutely nothing to talk about.

Picking out one of the malls there, they parked, and searched for a few jewelry stores there. There wasn't much luck so far, and as lunchtime rolled over, they chose a nice restaurant of fine dining, sitting in a fairly secluded four-seater table with a couch. It was quiet through the entrées. Someone had offered today's cake, and two plates had been set onto the table, one for the new duo to share. And as the last course ensued, Lighting raised a question he knows will throw her off completely.

"'Lene?"

"Yeah?"

"What happened last night?"

She stared at him, freezing mid-chew. Francesco did the same. It was a few seconds before she swallowed, swiping the napkin over her mouth.

"How did you know?" she asked him, voice dangerously soft.

"I, er, heard something, you know, last night." He swallowed. "I…sorta moved in next door."

She only nodded, blinking thoughtfully until she nudged Francesco. "You tell him."

Francesco stared at her, but Lightning didn't see the incredulity or anger he expected; there was only gentleness, which ultimately surprised Lightning. "He asked you," he told her, voice soft.

She rolled her eyes, sighing, but her hands disappeared from the table. "Alright, so maybe something did happen," she said reluctantly.

Lightning's pursed lips broke into a wide grin. "I knew it," he said happily, then leaned forward to hear more, gaze intent. "So, how did it go?"

She glared at him. "Lightning, I'm just discovered my sex life," she told him flatly as she blushed slightly.

This time, his smile grew evil. "Oh, so you do have a sex life now," he growled smilingly.

She waved her hand away. "Whatever," she said, and the men laughed as she poked at the slice of cake.

Francesco leaned over to murmur something in Marlene's ear as she popped a bit of icing into her mouth, and she just mumbled, "Don't make it any more awkward than it already is, Francesco." He smiled, but she leaned her head on his shoulder.

Lightning could only watch as Marlene argued lightly with Francesco over who gets the icing between the cake. He bowed his head. That should be him and Sally, sharing a slice of cake; they hardly ever did that, and he couldn't remember when was the last time that happened. It may not be soon, but maybe they could, and he held on to that.


	17. Chapter 17

_Heheh, everyone's evil these days, __**Pancake**__, mwahahaha~ You can blame Katy Perry for that chapter, and maybe even this chapter. 78D And yes, they're still in search of the ring._

…_I don't really know. I'll have to change TWDFL then. But maybe not, because this story isn't even really a part of the saga, so maybe. Heheh, really, __**Mere**__? xD I expected less from you! And I can never, ever talk about that with my BFF because she's a committed bachelorette. :/ xD_

_Stupid filler chapters and break-ups; no action to really write about. :/ And I'm sorry for the late; slacked off. xD_

_Tread carefully, my fans; I have placed a bad fluff bomb here._

* * *

_**Chapter Seventeen**_

There wasn't much luck in the first mall, so they checked others in the city. But it was the same thing: no luck. He believed he needed a custom-made ring for Sally, but there wasn't any time for that. He needed a ring **now** and he was going to get it.

Marlene didn't give much help. According to her and a few knowledgeable assistants and jewelers, an engagement ring didn't have to be so intricate, but it didn't have to be so simple, either. It would have to be something that would tell the world that she was his, and, if he wanted, to tell the world he was hers with a matching ring or so.

He didn't want a diamond ring; the gem per se was costly and so cliché. He didn't want a gold band, although it would remind her of the color of his hair. He wanted an alloy that would withstand their work in the six months it would take to prepare for the wedding.

"What about pearls?" she told him. "Pearls are nice."

He only shook his head. "Pearls? Are you serious?" And that was the end of her suggestion.

"Maybe there's something for you in Vegas," Marlene told him as they left the last store of the day.

It was nearly six in the evening, and it was a thirty-minute drive home.

"Let's have dinner first, then we go home; we're here now, why don't' we just take the opportunity to do so?" he suggested.

Marlene stared at Francesco, unsure. The latter only nodded, and she faced her friend again. "Alright."

After a quick dinner they returned home. There was nothing new when they returned, but the residents seemed to mourn the death of the love Sally and Lightning shared. They must have heard about it from Sally.

She only needed to turn her head to see the trio entering the lobby, and her heart sort of leapt at the sight of Lightning. But she knew she couldn't be happy about things, because Marlene was there, her hand on his shoulder as he walked. Both were conversing, something about rings. They must be discussing wedding rings, Sally decided, and angrily turned back to the computer screen, but she couldn't help notice that Francesco had left for the elevators.

"Sally?" a soft voice called not five minutes later, and she looked up to see Francesco smiling there.

"Oh," she said sadly. "Hello, Francesco." She finished up slightly before turning to him. "What can I do for you?"

"I'd like to check out," he told her, and held up his room key.

Her eyes widened. "I thought you were going to stay for a week; it's been only four days!"

He nodded. "_Si,_ I know." He was quiet…_far too quiet_ for her liking.

She looked at him skeptically, a brow raised. "Something tells me you're hiding something."

"Francesco has his secrets, _Signorina _Sally; you have yours," he replied smilingly.

She was still doubtful as she checked him out, and he paid what was due to the hotel before he winked at Sally and rejoined Lightning and Marlene, who had stopped to wait for him. They then retreated upstairs, and Sally fumed. She returned to her work to get her mind off the frustration, but a thought lingered: why did Francesco return upstairs? To get his things? Perhaps. She would see him in a few minutes, then. _Perfect_.

"So, good night, then?" he told Marlene.

"I'll see you tomorrow, anyway," she chuckled.

"Yeah-h, well." He shrugged, and she grinned. "Are you sure? Vegas?"

She laughed slightly. "Good night, Lightning," she told him, and he gave her a hug before turning away.

She sighed as she shut the door, pressing on the bolting mechanism before she leaned on the door, her back to the panel.

"_So_," he said, soft and sultry, "_how do we proceed?_"

She watched him as he spoke, while he simultaneously turned his head over his shoulder and pulled his button-up off his toned shoulders. She smirked, flicking the lights off, and she crossed the room. Pale silver moonlight filtered through the curtains of sheer fabric, bleaching the colors of the room to black and white, making the scene ever corporeal as he pulled her in his arms, her lips fierce on his.

* * *

It was six in the morning. Most of the town was up, especially Mia, Tia, and the cook at Flo's V8 Café. Flo was still in bed, still exhausted. Marlene and Francesco were up, waiting for Lightning, as usual. There were very few in the restaurant, and Mia had dozed off, while Tia stayed up to watch over the café.

Marlene breathed deeply as she sat by Francesco, gazing into space as she did. He wondered if anything was wrong. She shook her head, blinking.

"It's that song," she told him. "Listen if you will."

He listened to the lyrics that played softly on the speakers. A song he hadn't really recognized.

"What about it?"

"I can relate to it," she said softly, fingertip caressing the brim of the warm mug. "My life has been…dotted…with men that have never exceeded my expectations," she told him. "Being with them didn't feel like the movies." She chuckled slightly as she stared at the black beverage. "But somehow, I knew there was someone out there, like Snow White." She smiled up at him. "Although, i didn't expect it would be you."

He blinked. "Is that a good thing?"

"Yes," she told him. "Yes it is."

He smiled back, and bent his head. Her eyes slid shut, and his fingers threaded through hers.

"Mia, Mia!" Tia whispered urgently as she shook her sister awake.

"Zznxz, what?" Mia gasped groggily as she sat up. She narrowed her eyes at Tia. "What was that for?"

"Look," Tia said happily, and pointed to their adopted big sister.

Mia rolled her eyes, and glanced at the direction her sister was pointing. That shook her awake, because her eyes widened. Both sisters could barely hide their squeaks, and both gripped each other's hands in sheer joy.

Just then, Lightning pushed open the glass door, the chimes tinkling0, and he first caught Tia and Mia by the counter, gripping each other. The twins looked at him, and pointed at the couple in the booth. All it took was one look.

He continuously sipped at a mug of cocoa that Tia had quietly brought over as he watched, sitting opposite his friends. He was quite happy his best friend finally found love, but wistful all the same, with a few reasons. One, he missed Sally so much he didn't know what he'd do. And two, maybe he was a little jealous that Francesco had Marlene all to himself; she was an awesome girl to be with, after all. But nonetheless, Sally was ever more perfect for Lightning; he didn't need anyone else to tell him that.

One glance up though, and Marlene wrenched herself out of Francesco's hold, but he wouldn't let her go that easily. Although one word told Francesco to stop.

"Lightning," she gasped slightly as she blushed thickly.

The American racer broke into a wide grin. "Good morning," he told them, and she looked down like an errant girl in front of a parent.

"I'm sorry you had to see that," she murmured, rubbing her arm slightly.

Lightning only chuckled. "Maybe Mia and Tia enjoyed it more than I did; it was like a movie scene."

Marlene stared at the twins, who giggled. She rolled her eyes, and turned back. "So, are you ready to leave?" she asked her friend. "After breakfast?"

"After breakfast," Lightning agreed as his stomach snarled.

Soon enough, he had finished a stack of pancakes. Discussion wasn't much, as usual. When they had paid the bill, they turned to the garage, and set off for Las Vegas, Nevada.

"Mia," Sally called at eight in the morn as she arrived at Flo's, "where's Lightning?"

Mia was surprised Sally had asked that, but nonetheless answered. "Oh, he went with Marlene to Vegas," she told the lawyer.

"Vegas?" Sally called angrily.

Mia trembled slightly. "Y-yeah, Vegas."

"That scheming vixen!" Sally hissed as she sat there.

"…what will you do now?"

Sally glared at the blue-eyed teen, a gleam in her eyes. "I'll wait," she murmured. "I'll wait."

It was a five-hour drive, and they had made good time, even if it was a Sunday morning, reaching the world's entertainment capital a little after eleven-thirty.

There were several malls open at that time, and several jewelry stores were at their mercy. Lightning had visited Las Vegas before as a publicity stunt encouraged by his agent, Harv, for signings and appearances.

"And so, what did you do in Vegas?" Marlene asked as they drove around at Lightning's directions.

"Had a few drinks, maybe," he told her.

She chuckled. "No girls?"

He glared at her through the rearview mirror. "Why the hell would I go for someone else?"

She shrugged. "I don't know; for all I know you could be drunk or something."

He made a face at her, and she chuckled again.

As they made their way to the Forum Shops at Caesars that stood right next to the prestigious Caesars Palace in the Las Vegas Strip, there was much to tell about Lightning's time in Las Vegas. And as they crossed the threshold to the glamorous mall, the duo was awestruck.

"Wow," Francesco murmured.

"Wow can't even compare, Francesco," Marlene replied as she stared around.

"Yeah, it's glamorous, I know, now come on," Lightning grumbled, and pulled Marlene by the wrist, who, in turn, tugged Francesco along.

They soon reached a line of jewelry stores, and they searched each one. The attendants were gracious enough to serve them. But for Marlene, some store owners, managers and even attendants refused to attend to the girl. Francesco was quite irritated their own choices of people to serve were limited, and refused to choose anything. Despite that, there were many that caught each others' eyes, but none of which could agree to Lightning's standard.

"Ooh," Marlene murmured. "Look at this." She beckoned whoever of the two was closest to her. She requested a trinket be shown to her, and she was presented with a beautiful pinkish-purple Briolette-cut precious topaz with a bell-shaped cap. In layman's terms, it was a teardrop-shaped, sunset orange semi-precious gemstone.

"When's your birthday?" Francesco asked in a low voice.

"November," she told him as she examined the gem under the brilliant light. "How much is this?"

"Three hundred dollars, miss," the male assistant replied, and Marlene carefully set down the gemstone as if it would explode if she dropped it. Well, maybe her wallet would. She swallowed. "Thank you for showing me," she replied.

"You're not taking it?" Francesco murmured.

"Francesco, I don't have the money for it," she replied sadly.

"Do you want it?" he asked her.

She blinked, staring at the gem again. She nodded unconsciously as she frowned. How was she going to get three hundred dollars?

She hadn't really realized Francesco had pulled out his wallet from his back pocket and was flicking through the bills.

"Hey, you don't have to do that," she told him.

"It's my money; I'll do what I want with it," he replied gently.

Marlene was flustered, but she knew she wouldn't be able to convince a man otherwise. "Go ahead and pick a chain; I'll get back to you."

Lightning had caught the entire exchange, and felt jealous all the same. Sally hardly ever let him buy jewelry for herself, and even as gifts, she refused to wear them, except if it was a special occasion. But what was the reason he bought them in the first place? For special occasions? No, they were there to remind her he loves her so much he'd do anything for her.

That didn't register in Sally's mind as she stared at the jewelry box in front of her now. She had decided to wear something to work today, but thought better of it. She narrowed her eyes and turned away. He'd spent so much for nothing.

He sighed as Marlene wondered which chain would go well with the pendant, and turned back to the rings in front of him. But there was nothing there, and returned to the duo, watching patiently. They left the shoppe with a new item around Marlene's neck.

Lightning sighed sadly. "I don't even know if there's anything for me here," he murmured.

Francesco only pat his friend on the back. "I'm sure you will be able to find what you are looking for, my friend," he told Lightning. "We just have to look harder."

Lightning smiled sadly, and they entered another shop at Marlene's encouragement. He hadn't the hope and strength to go on, but followed anyway, and glanced past the glass windows of the cases, not really looking for anything.

"Light, look at this," Marlene called.

"What is it now?" he groaned. He narrowed his eyes and shuffled to where Marlene was looking down at. She pointed down, and his eyes opened wide.

There he found the ring of his dreams.

* * *

_Oohh, what's that there? O.o I wonder what the ring looks like~ ^-^_


	18. Chapter 18

_Then, my dear __**Pancake**__, I have promised myself a fluffy Marlesco oneshot (which may well be the only thing I'll be writing first) and a fluffy SalQueen oneshot (which I may not be able to do x3), and I shall expect you to review it first! xDDD || Yes, that is so true. *nods sadly* Francesco is as Francesco does these days, heheh~ I'm thinking of doing a SalQueen triangle again with Francesco, this time, the Italian being more of his original, stereotyped version! *hehehe* || I loved that pendant. :D D: It was so beautiful~_

_xD It's kind of awesome and awkward to have someone begging for me to hurry up, because I already am! xD You know as well as I do, beloved __**Mere**__stuffins, that I am as excited as you are to know how this story ends! *writing without an outline, stupid old me~ xD* And the only reason I'm so busy these days is because I'm trying to finish 3IAC! 78DDD_

_I miss Miss __**Shadoru**__. D8 But she's busy, so what can I do? ._._

* * *

_**Chapter Eighteen**_

She requested the trinket be shown to her, and as she inspected it, even it took his breath away.

It was a beautiful ring, with a gem of blue topaz. The gem with a princess or square cut was anchored at its corners with intricately designed tendrils. What stretched at the length of the band were square little transparent gems, possibly of diamond, and were set into a band of silver. It was simple yet intricate. Just like Sally Carrera.

As they examined the ring, Marlene continuously asked questions. "Is that true blue topaz?"

"Yes, Miss," the manager replied. "The only reason why people do not purchase from this store is because of its outrageous prices. Unfortunately, of the gems we sell, few kinds are semi-precious or otherwise faked to be presented as a true semi-precious stone." He sniffed. "But our production line is very much original and natural, I assure you."

"…are those diamonds?" Lightning asked.

"Oh, yes," the manager replied. "Those are hard, original diamonds."

"The band is…what?"

"The band is of titanium. With the gems handling most of the weight, designers thought that the band should be lightweight to compensate."

"And…how much?" Francesco offered.

"Twenty thousand, sir."

Marlene nearly fainted at the price, and Lightning's eyes only widened, but he reached for his back pocket. "Do you have any of those ring boxes?"

The man smiled. "In what color, sir?"

"Bright red, if you please."

Marlene stared at him. "Twenty big ones?" she told him.

"What's twenty thousand to secure an eternity of love?" he replied smilingly as the manager brought out a selection of red ring boxes.

She smiled and elbowed him gently. "You sick lovebird," she told him, and he grinned at her.

* * *

They returned that evening, and managed to come home in time for dinner. Lightning was very much excited to tell Sally the news, but how was he going to do it?

"How _are_ you going to do it?" Marlene asked as the two met up with the twins. Francesco had wandered off the secure the room upstairs.

Lightning looked down. "I hadn't thought of that," he told her.

"Did you want me to talk to her first? You know, try to ask her to go to this place wheresoever?" she offered.

He glanced back at her, smiling. "Yeah, that'd be great," he said.

"But Sally knows Marlene and Lightning are engaged," Mia put in. "What happens then?"

"Well, I'll try at any rate," Marlene told them.

"When?"

"I don't know; I'll just wait," she told them. Details and any arrangements were discussed then.

"Alright, that should do it," Lightning said. "Marlene, you go get Sally, and I'll wait at HQ. Mia, Tia, if she needs help-"

"Gotcha," they told him.

"All set then," Marlene said anxiously. "Now come on; I probably have to check what's happened upstairs." She smirked as she tugged at Lightning's wrist. "You never know what Francesco would do if he sees what I've got in my bag."

Lighting, Mia and Tia laughed aloud as Marlene pulled her friend outside the café, towards the lobby of the Cozy Cone.

There they found Sally still working, and Marlene parted instructions to Lightning before she went over to talk to the lawyer.

"Hey, Sally," she greeted as she leaned over the counter.

Sally glared up for a moment before she looked down again. "What, are you here to gloat?"

"Not really," Marlene replied. "I heard Lightning used to give you a lot of trinkets."

"Oh, yeah, them," she said flatly. "What about them?"

"Nothing, just mentioning."

There was a few moments of silence, until Sally was irritated enough to speak. "Don't you have anywhere else to go?" she asked.

"Not really; I just wanted to see how you're doing." Marlene's eyes were serious, not contemptuous. "Everyone's worried about you, Sally." She twiddled her pendant between her fingers.

"Well, tell them they have nothing to be worried about, because-hey, is that topaz?" she said, and examined the jewel that hung around the journalist's neck.

"Yeah." Marlene smiled. "Isn't it pretty?"

Sally needed information so she can confront Lightning someday. This was the best person and moment to do just that. "Didn't you want a ring?"

"Oh, my typing gets awry with a ring," she said, "and a Briolette-cut is my favorite."

Sally nodded in understanding. "So this is in place of a ring?"

"Yup."

Sally just set the gem down gently as so to not offend 'Lightning's fiancée'. "Alright."

Marlene smiled at Sally, and both heard Lightning and Francesco conversing nearby. Marlene turned her head over her shoulder. "He's amazing, do you know that?" Her tone was affectionate.

Maybe too affectionate for Sally to take. "Yeah," she said begrudgingly. "Maybe he is."

Marlene looked at Sally, frowning slightly. "Did you ever think Francesco perfect for you?" she asked. "Just a passing thought, Sally. And I'd like you to answer honestly."

Sally blinked as Marlene turned back to watch the two men. That was when the hurt and the love floated to the forefront of her mind, sending tingles down her skin.

"Not really," she replied. "Maybe just because he didn't fit with me."

Marlene only nodded. "But is Lightning perfect?"

Sally nodded, unable to stop herself in the midst of wave after wave of memories and feelings she had forced herself to forget. "He is."

Marlene smiled at Sally. "So is he," she said softly, turning back.

"Who, Francesco?"

Marlene only shrugged. The two men waved at the girls, and Marlene waved back. The journalist turned back to Sally. "I heard Francesco checked out last night."

This seemed to shake Sally awake slightly. "Yeah, and I don't know where he's been staying." Her tone was quite bewildered. "Do you know where?"

Marlene shrugged again, this time smilingly. "Who cares?" she murmured, and pushed off the counter to meet with Lightning and Francesco.

Sally returned to her jealousy, and looked down as Lighting's hand reached up for Marlene's shoulder on the far side. She wasn't going to allow Marlene to get to her, she just couldn't.

But she couldn't seem to shake off the feeling the conversation with the journalist had something hidden there. She just didn't know what.

* * *

It was morning again, and Sally awoke, cold and alone. She missed Lightning. She missed him so much.

At this, she remembered how he would touch her, how it made her feel good, how he made her feel happy. She remembered the touch of his lips, the fine contours of his chest, the strength in his arms. She remembered how he would always be there to help her, how he was there to help the town, how he impressed her with the many hidden things he failed to show his first few days at Radiator Springs three years, four months ago.

She cried over the many things she missed about the only man that ever made her feel important, about the one and only Lightning McQueen.

Lightning, on the other hand, greeted the morning with a smile. Today might be the day he and Sally will be engaged. He had high hopes she would listen to him. He stared at the ring again before he started the day, and pocketed the special piece of jewelry that would remind them of their love as he made his way to breakfast.

He conversed with various people, from residents and friends to visitors who approached for an autograph. He settled with his best friend and his rival happily.

"You seem happy today," Marlene said smilingly.

"Maybe as happy as you," he told her, and she blushed thickly as she looked away. He sighed, taking no note of Marlene's flustering.

"High hopes?" Francesco offered.

Lightning smiled at his rival, too happy to retort. "Yeah." He swallowed. "I just hope she'll listen."

"She will, Lightning," Marlene reassured him. "She will."

Francesco then finished his mug of cocoa, and checked his pockets. "Oh, I forgot my wallet," he told them. "I'll have to go back for it."

Marlene moved out of the way, and he murmured a quick 'Meet you in the lobby' before he left.

"…you really do love him, don't you?" Lightning asked.

She chuckled shyly. "Yeah, maybe I do," she replied. "I mean, its so hard not to love him, you know?"

"Really?"

She nodded, chuckling as he stared at her continuously. "Stop it."

"M-hm." His voice was suggestive.

"Lightning, stop it!" she squeaked.

He laughed good-naturedly. "Seriously, I'm happy for you," he told her.

"Thanks," she replied, and finished the last of her cocoa. "Alright, I'm dry." She set the cup down, as well as the bill, pinning it under the saucer.

"Don't you think that's a ploy? You know, for you to pay for him," Lightning asked.

"Well, I'm quite happy to spend money for him, you know, after that three hundred bucks." She shuddered and sighed. "I feel like I owe him so much, Lightning," she told him. "And it's not just because of the pendant."

He cocked his head to the side, but thought better of asking. It could be something that was a little personal, as suggested by the dreamy smile on her face.

She breathed deeply, and stood. "Well, I better get to the lobby; Francesco's taking me shopping today."

"Phoenix?"

"Yup." She shuddered. "I don't know why he insisted I get myself a dress."

Lightning smirked. "Oh, you would look pretty in a dress!" he called, and she gave him a good-natured slap.

"Did you want to come?"

"Oh, no; I really wouldn't want to spoil Francesco's day," he replied evilly, and Marlene smacked him again. He laughed as she made her way out, waving to Mia, Tia and Flo as she did.

Meanwhile, Francesco was already down at the lobby after picking up a handful of cash. He was whistling happily, walking with a hop in his step, the sound resonating in the empty lobby.

"Francesco," someone called, and he turned to see Sally there, smiling at him.

"Miss Sally," he called as he smiled, walking towards her.

"Where have you been all day yesterday?" she asked. "It's been so lonely here in the lobby without you."

"Really?"

"M-hm." She pushed off the counter so she can lay her hand on his wrist. "Think you can spare a few minutes of talk?"

"Erm, okay."

She bit her lip. "What have Marlene and Lightning been doing? Not to pry, I mean," she added quickly as she stared into his brown eyes.

"Er…" He didn't know what to say. Should he tell her anything about today? "Nothing much." That much was true; all they did was stroll through a mall.

"Really?" Her fingertips trailed up his arm as she spoke.

"Would I lie to you, Miss Sally?" he told her, a bead of sweat coming down his neck in nervousness.

"Hmm, I don't think so," she said softly, the palm of her hand on his shoulder now. This she can do, surely, now that Lightning wasn't tied to her? "But maybe even you would keep secrets from me."

"No, I'll be pretty honest with you," he told her.

"Francesco?"

"_Si, bella signorina_?"

"Why are you nervous?" She stepped forward so her face was just inches from his, her hands on his shoulders now.

He stepped back, but she only stepped with him. That was stupid, he thought. "Francesco is never nervous," he told her, "but your closeness is something to be worried of."

She smiled, chuckling softly, her gaze dropping shyly. "Now, will you tell me what Marlene and Lightning are doing?"

He folded his arms across his chest. "I will not betray my friends," he told her.

"But I am your friend…am I not?" she squeaked with pleading eyes.

"Yes, but—" He would have said more, but her lips stopped his.

There was an audible gasp at the end of the hallway, and Sally's lips moved, not away, but against Francesco's.

The only thing was, Sally didn't expect Marlene to act so harshly.

The journalist thrust Sally back, and as the lawyer staggered away from the Italian, Marlene slapped Sally on the cheek.

"You despicable whore!" Marlene shrieked.

Sally stared back, surprised and angry. "What do you care about Francesco?" she snapped. "Aren't you contented with Lightning already?"

"Oh! Me? Contented with Lightning?" Marlene spat. "He has his heart set for you, thanks very much! Don't you think we spent all day yesterday, and the day before that, having fun and forgetting about you!" she snapped.

Sally was ultimately taken back. "You…you didn't?"

"No! We were—" Francesco's rough tug stopped her form telling the truth.

"You were what? Celebrating I was gone?" Sally spat.

"That's not the point," Marlene growled.

"Then what is?"

"The point is, you shouldn't go off stealing someone else's boyfriend behind their backs, or in this case, your friend's!" she spat, and turned to face Francesco.

"Wait, you—boyfriend?" Now Sally was really confused.

Francesco's arms slid around Marlene's waist then, and he pulled her close. Obviously they didn't hear Sally.

"Did you want to go upstairs?" Sally heard Francesco murmured. Marlene only nodded, and he led her to the elevators.

Sally could only stare as they skirted the lawyer, the superstar continuously holding the journalist close.

How could MArlene have scored like that, Sally wondered. But moreover, what was she talking about? What did they do yesterday, and the day before that? Who brought the topaz pendant? And most of all, what was Lightning doing?


	19. Chapter 19

_Alright, I realize I haven't really been fair in the first chapter, so there's a new Ch.1 for you there, and the original Ch.1 is now Ch.2, and so on. :)_

_I've explained so much about Lightning and Sally there's nothing to write about anymore. . Which should explain that evening's crap. xD_

* * *

_**Chapter Nineteen**_

As that Lightning had absolutely nothing to do today, given that Mater was out with Holley on her meager break, the rest of the town was fairly busy, Marlene was spending quality time with Francesco, and, of course, Sally hated him momentarily, he just stayed in his luxury room and vowed to sleep the day away.

Sally returned to HQ at midday to re-secure the two-story building, our of things to do during her break, and she found a small family waiting at the front door.

"Hello, Sally greeted, "how may I help you?"

"Oh, is Mr. McQueen here?" the father asked. "My son and daughter are fans of his, and they'd like a souvenir or so. The young boy and his older teen sister smiled hopefully.

Sally swallowed. "I'm terribly sorry, but he's not in," she told them apologetically.

The young boy sighed sadly, and turned to his sister's arms.

"Joey, not out here," his sites said. "I'm sorry; my brother can't handle disappointment very well." She rubbed Little Joey's back slightly.

"Come on guys; let's go home." The father then turned.

"Wait," Sally called out. She had made a daily account of who was staying where earlier that morn. "Go to Room 13 on the second floor of the Cozy Cone; I'm sure you'll find him there."

The father was bewildered, but the kids jumped up. Little Joey wiped away his tears. "Thank you!" the boy squeaked, and hugged Sally tightly.

A wave of affection washed over the lawyer, and she pat the boy's shoulders. "Next time, don't cry too soon, alright?" she said boy nodded sheepishly before tugging at his father's pants excitedly. Sally only smiled as she aged after them.

How she wished she would have children like that someday! Oh, how many names she'd plucked out so often in the last two and a half years, not even bothering to know if she would be able to use them or not.

She sighed sadly as she remembered she wasn't with Lightning anymore. There was hardly any chance of her being 'Mrs. Lightning McQueen', of her sharing his last name, or of her children having the last names Carrera-McQueen. She, and maybe even her children, could only be Carrera-someone.

**la**

The town's newest couple returned home that eve. Lightning only watched from inside the café as the R8 turned into the garage beside the motel. Marlene left the passenger's side, Francesco the driver's. Both were smiling as together, they brought out the day's haul from the front of the sports car. He shook his head as he focus on his dinner. He would never understand why Marlene refused to go with Lightning to the mall, whereas she would go with Francesco.

"I told you, I don't need a new wardrobe!" Sally heard Marlene call. The lawyer looked up to see the journalist holding a few shopping bags by the handles.

"Considering all you wear to special occasions are pants, you'll need it!" Francesco shot back smilingly, bringing his own haul over his shoulder, one long bag which seemed to contain either a suit or a dress.

Sally sighed wistfully as she watched the superstar draw his arm around Marlene's waist, and matched Marlene's pace step for step as he pressed his lips to her black-brown hair. Her friend was luckier than Sally herself, not that Marlene had _the_ Francesco Bernoulli at her mercy, but that Marlene had [found] love. She didn't look back up when the duo crossed the lobby again, hand in hand.

"Lightning McQueen!" Francesco called out happily, the same way he did at the World Grand Prix. "_Buona sera!_"

"Francesco, her," Lightning greeted the Formula racer. "'Evening, Marlene."

"Hi, Lightning," she said, elbowing Francesco lightly. "May we join you?"

He gestured to the leather-covered seats in front of him. "By all means. Had dinner yet?"

"Sort of," she replied. "I'm not really hungry."

Francesco snickered, and Marlene only smacked him on the upper arm.

"So, what happened, and what can I get you?" Tia asked as she approached, waitress-like.

"Nothing happened, and I'll have a glass of root beer," Marlene replied, smiling as she did.

"Nothing tonight?" Tia stared at her adopted older sister.

Marlene narrowed her eyes thoughtfully. "Nah."

Francesco stared at her at the word 'beer', and she rolled her eyes. "It's not even real beer, Francesco; it's a flavor of coke."

"And I suppose you're the same?" Tia looked at Francesco.

"Took the words right out of my mouth," he told her.

As Tia turned away, and Marlene returned to discussion. "So, what about that proposal of yours?" she asked him.

He sighed. "It seems too…cliché. You know, telling her words and asking her up front," he told them. "I want her to remember the day we got engaged."

She rolled her eyes. "All you'll remember is your wedding day," she replied.

"Nonetheless."

She sighed. Things were quiet for a moment, lengthening as the glasses of soda were set onto the table.

"Why not? It is a formal way of engagement," Francesco added.

Lightning shook his head. "Still think it's cliché."

"I've got it!" Marlene exclaimed.

"What?" he asked.

"Here's how we do it…."

* * *

Later that evening, just as closing time for the other stores rolled over, Sally felt absolutely exhausted. Thinking about Lightning didn't help, either.

"Sal?" a voice called.

She looked up to see Marlene. "Yeah?"

"Wanna play a game?" She held up a blindfold.

"Can't," she said. "I'm tired."

"Aw, just one little round," Marlene pleaded.

Sally sighed. "Who's playing?"

Marlene grinned. "The residents, of course! Even Holley's playing."

"Where?"

"Here, in the lobby."

Sally's eyes widened. "Out here? Won't people see?"

Marlene shrugged. "The more, the merrier then."

Sally eyed her friend, suspicious, but moved to leave the desk. "I'm it?"

"That's what they told me," she replied, and looked over to the twins, who waved hi.

Sally sighed, and turned around. "Alright," she said begrudgingly as her friend blindfolded her.

Marlene led Sally to the middle of the lobby, and called, "Marco!"

The rest replied with "Polo!", and the game began.

Sally soon grinned as she twisted around, looking for those who tapped at her shoulder. As that Mia and Tia were the youngest, which also made them the quickest, they darted from left to right, but the rest of the residents moved around to simulate a real game.

Just then, Marlene called for a pause, telling Sally to stay put. "Someone's calling on your phone," she said as she took the cellphone from Angel, who fished it from inside Sally's bag.

"Who?"

"Er…here." She pressed the receiver to Sally's ear. "Says it's urgent." That was when a voice spoke.

"_Gods, this is going to be cheesy; did you want the cheesy part, or did you want me to cut to the chase?_" she heard a voice say.

It was a fairly unfamiliar voice, maybe it was because it was on the phone. "Er, go on, please." she prodded gently. "I prefer to know all the details."

There was a deep breath, and the voice spoke once more. _"Sally, when I met you years ago, I thought you were the worst person that was brought to the world by God. I mean, you couldn't help me out, and instead chose to stay by what you believed._

_"But you turned my world upside down, from what I believed you were, from what I believed your friends were, to whatever I believed now. And I love that; I really do._

_"Every day I spent with you after that made my days, even if you did go to work the entire day most of the time, or had to do some other errand. I can understand that. Every night I've spent with you was amazing, and every touch with and from you can be anything but forgotten or considered bad._

_"I probably don't need to elaborate on things you already know: you're smart, beautiful, sweet in bed, logical, and did I already mention you were beautiful?"_

There was a small chuckle at the end of the line, and Sally smiled slightly, still uncertain who this was, and was quite bewildered and feeling awkward, but nonetheless listened intently for more.

_"A day doesn't go by when I haven't thought of you at least a few hundred times," _the voice said. _"And a day won't ever go by without the same thing._

_"I knew I wouldn't love anyone else after you, or blast back to the past for anyone I've let go. _

_"She's not my kind of girl. She can't make me feel the things you stir in my heart, in my nerves. Best of all, she's not my Sally Carrera."_

Sally gasped. What the hell did she just hear?

"_Sally, I'm sorry for the way I've acted these past few days. I guess I'll have to admit I was jealous that you preferred Francesco to me. The thing is, I took that jealousy seriously. I didn't stop to think if you still loved me, or if you still wanted me to be with you every day, every night. I was stupid, and I'm sorry."_

Tears started wetting the blindfold as love gripped her heart with an iron grip. It hurt her chest, but she didn't want it to let go. She never wanted it to let go.

_"I don't really blame you for thinking I was with Marlene the entire time. I know you were feeling the same way. But as I said, I don't blame you for that. All I'm here for is to tell you I'm sorry for the hurt I've caused us."_

"But you didn't," she whispered.

_"I won't let you take any of the blame,_" he told her, tone almost stern. "_I love you, Sally Carrera. I really do._" There was a pause. _"And all I can do is take the next step…for both of us._

"_Now, do you forgive me?"_

"It's…it's a lot to take in," she replied. "I'm not sure."

"_For what reason?"_

"I just…I don't know. I don't know what to think."

_"Turn around, Sally, and listen to your heart."_

Sally turned a rough one hundred-eighty degrees.

"_I love you, Sally Carrera. I've gone through enough to know that my heart will never see the light of another woman, as long as it's with you,_" he told her gently. There was no voice on the phone, but she could hear his voice, as perfect as it was, as gentle and loving as it should be. _"Look down, and take that damned blindfold off._"

And there was a face, as perfect as it was, as bright and as loving as it should be.

"Sally Carrera," he told her softly. "Will you marry me?"

The tears streaked down her cheeks as she gazed at the blue and silver ring in a red and white box that rested in the hands of her greatest lover, now genuflecting in front of her, his smiling face hoping she would accept.

"Yes," she gasped. "Oh, Lightning, yes!"

The onlookers cheered and applauded as Lightning stood, and Sally lunged for him, arms tight around his neck. She felt his arms encircle her, and she breathed in his warm, sweet scent as she pressed her face to his neck.

"Stickers, I'm so sorry—"

But he cut her off. "Hush, my love," he told her as she cried in love and joy. "Hush."

She was so happy and so sorry at that moment, that she could barely think. The pent-up feelings poured out as gems of dew, soaking Lightning's shirt slightly. He just held her there, happy enough to cry after some seventeen years, his face pressed to her hair.

It was a while before Sally could lift her face to the light, and Marlene offered a bit of tissue for Sally to blow her nose on.

"Can I try the ring on now?" she asked hoarsely.

Lightning only chuckled as he swiped the thin streams away with his wrist. He opened the ring box again, and slipped the ring onto her ring finger.

"A perfect fit," Sally whispered.

"An omen," Marlene replied as softly, "that you and Lightning are perfect together."

Sally smiled at this, and Lightning only pressed his lips to hers for the first time in what seemed like an eternity.


	20. Chapter 20

_**Mere**__, here's the epilogue you were talking about. Hehe~ Maybe you read so fast, like me. xD And also, you better see for yourself on that ending. :)_

_**anon**__ is up early. xD D: You left me alone~ *foreveralone* Naw, that's fine, and thanks for that; I didn't exactly know what to come up with Lightning and Sally anymore because there was so much description and…I hate my crap. :/ But whatever; this story has been resolved before school started. xD ^-^_

_As usual, I included Marlesco in here because I can't write much SalQueen; it's supposed to be an epilogue! D8 . I think I'll retire for a while, but there's very little chance of that. xD_

_Finished in only 18 days? O.o With college reviews in between? o.O That's awesome, don't you guys think? xD_

* * *

_**Chapter Twenty**_

Sally sighed contentedly as she settled on one of the leather couches of Flo's V8 Café, Lightning sitting beside her. She felt older, but oddly the same as she did before. She and Lightning were roughly alone; there were very few people today, despite everything. Maybe it was because they had announced the services of the town wouldn't be open for a few days, except to those who had reserved rooms that day and those who were staying at the motels. Most of the lights at the café were off to give the couples in the store a romantic setting, even if it was just a diner, because the way the golden light of the setting sun crossed the big windows of the café from the west was breathtaking.

At Lightning's plead, she had turned down work not only today, but for a whole two weeks, starting from the day they were engaged. It was miraculous, how much of the day she hadn't realized she was missing, and how much had happened in only a month.

She looked up from his shoulder to find Lightning asleep. He, of course, had taken most of the whole shebang onto his shoulders. She lovingly kissed his lips, and he moaned softly as his lips moved with hers.

"Mm, I love you," he murmured at the first lift of her lips from his.

"I love you too," she replied as softly.

"Guys, the kids are staring," a voice murmured, and the newlyweds parted, cheeks burning with embarrassment.

"Sorry," they said in unison, and they chuckled slightly at the synchronization.

"Well, no harm done, I suppose," the voice spoke, and the two found Marlene standing there, smiling down at them. "Want me to join you?"

Lightning chuckled. "I suppose you can keep us in check."

She chortled slightly, and settled down in the seats in front of them, her legs outward as her body faced the west. She rubbed her arm slightly, staring wistfully up at the ceiling. "He liked it here, you know, just sitting here and drinking coffee and just…talking." She winced, like someone just pinched her.

"You miss Francesco, don't you?" Sally murmured.

Marlene only nodded. "It's hard, you know, with a long-distance relationship." She paused, and the sunset's orange light seemed to reveal the shine in her sad green eyes. She sighed then.

"You really do love him, don't you?" Lightning whispered.

She nodded, and narrowed her eyes as she looked to the sunset. "It wasn't easy, you know, after his stay ended."

Lightning noticed only now his much his best friend valued his rival. But at that moment, and in various moments spread along the course of the year so far, he didn't consider Francesco as his rival, but as his best man, his friend, and his best friend's love.

"So, don't you both want a honeymoon? You know, go out and see the world?" Marlene asked, forcing a smile.

"Technically yes," Lightning said, "but what was the use, considering that there would be no other place in the world we'd be than in each other's arms?"

Sally blushed and chuckled, and Marlene sort of did so, too. "But he has a point," Sally said.

Marlene only nodded, pursing her lips slightly. "Maybe."

It was quiet for a while. Lightning watched most of the customers—who weren't many—leave the café to possibly check out a few tourist spots at Carburetor Canyon. Sally didn't really pay attention to anything in particular. But soon, thoughts wandered back to the superstar. "So, how's Francesco doing?" Sally asked out of curiosity.

"He's fine, I suppose," she told them. "Usually he talks to me once every two days or so, three if there's a race. But lately he's been silent as night, and I'm getting worried." She swallowed, and her gaze turned from sad to alarmed. "What if he's found someone else and doesn't want to have to do anything with me anymore?" The words tumbled out in a flurry, but Lightning knew she was worrying so much by the sound of that 'What if'. Not to his surprise, she continued. "What if he's forgotten about me? What if his mother doesn't approve of me anymore because I can't go to Italy to see him? What if—"

"Marlene, cut it out!" Lightning snapped fiercely. "Francesco loves you. I know him to be a man of his word, despite him being a superstar and all that crap. So, just because he hasn't called in a few days, don't say he doesn't love you."

"Who doesn't love who?" a voice called gently, yet loud enough for the trio to hear.

Marlene jumped up before she could even think it, and Francesco staggered back a few steps as he pressed his lips to hers, his arms around her tightly.

"Guys, the kids are staring," Lightning called as gently after a few moments, but the two didn't seem to hear. He sighed. "I hate it when they don't listen to me."

Sally chuckled. "They'll come around," she told him. "No one's here, anyway."

Lightning rolled his eyes, and watched his best friend and his best man like a movie scene. "Maybe we should break out the popcorn," he murmured, and Sally smacked him on the upper arm. He laughed softly, and held Sally close. "I remember when we were that young and naive," he told her gently.

She looked at him. "Are we still that way?"

The corner of his lips twitched. "Maybe; we have all night, as usual."

"Maybe," she agreed smilingly.

Lightning sighed. He didn't need anything else in this world to make him happy. Well, maybe he can't escape from the reality of life, like work and all that crap, but to keep him happy, he didn't need a vacation away from home. All he needed was Sally Carrera—no, wait, strike that—he needed Sally _Carrera-McQueen._

* * *

It was a wonderful August 2012 evening. A woman in the last year of her twenties waited patiently in a secluded booth, elbows on the table, her fingers laced together. And then, her friends had arrived.

"Hiya, Marlene," the twins greeted in unison.

"Guys," she called as she kissed her adopted sisters' cheeks, and hid her hands under the table. "How are you doing?"

"Loving promotion!" Tia squeaked. "We own the place now!"

"But we didn't change it because it wouldn't be Flo's. It wouldn't be Radiator Springs anymore if we changed it," Mia informed. She sighed. "We miss Flo telling us to do stuff."

Marlene only nodded. The older woman had retired early, but nonetheless, Flo arrived everyday to see to the twins' progress, and pitch in when she can. The sisters hired a few waiters and waitresses, and things flowed smoother than before.

"Do we still have to wait for the McQueens?" Tia asked, cocking her head to the side.

"You know we have to," Marlene said.

"Oop, there they are," Mia told them, and waved at the three-month-old couple.

"Hey, guys," Lightning called, and the McQueens sat by the twins. "What's up?"

"How's married life for you, Sally?" Marlene started off smilingly.

"Er, fine," she replied awkwardly. Why would Marlene ask this kind of question? "Why?"

Marlene shook her head, face now partly serious. "No reason," she said, "but I'd like to know: is it hard to be Lightning's wife, considering him being the greatest racer in America?"

Lightning was flattered, but noted that his best friend-girl said, _greatest racer in America_. What was she hinting at?

"Well, it's awkward and frustrating at times," Sally replied, "but it can be fun."

Marlene only nodded as she smiled thoughtfully at Sally.

"Why are you asking me things, Marlene?" Sally blurted out. "Sorry, but I have to know."

This time, she lifted her hands, and interlocked her fingers while settling her elbows on the tabletop. "Well, maybe the answer's right in front of you," she said slyly.

All four from her audience wondered what she meant, and stared at her continuously, bewildered.

The journalist only grinned. "Seen it yet?"

The sisters cocked their heads to the side slightly. Sally raised a brow. "What is it?" Lightning prodded.

Marlene only rolled her eyes as Francesco appeared, his smiling face looking down at Marlene's as he settled by her.

"Have you broken the news to them yet?" he asked lovingly as he put his arm around her.

"They don't seem to get the message." She bowed her hands slightly.

The movement made the four stare down at the ring that was, right in front of them, on her left ring finger. A small gem of precious topaz with a princess cut lay around a simple band of gold.

* * *

_Oh, no, not again!_ Sally leaned over the top of the bowl, and more than three mouthfuls of bile came surging up her esophagus.

It had been nearly five months into their new marital status, and she was getting sick. Her stomach rumbled and snapped as her belly clenched, and a mouthful of bile rose from her throat.

Lightning sighed. He remembered that night nearly a year ago, when he'd wished she'd be by his side when he crouched over the porcelain bowl. Now it was reversed: he was the one standing there, holding her hair up helplessly.

"What did you eat?" Lightning had growled at her earlier.

"Not…nothing!" she told him as she shivered, retching again. "I don't know, Lightning."

He sighed again. They didn't know what was wrong with her, and he was getting stressed out. It was the fifth day of this craziness, and he didn't know what to do.

"Sally…maybe we should go see a doctor," he told her as she brushed her teeth.

"But I—"

He shook his head in the mirror. "No more if's, but's or any other excuse," he said sternly. "I want you to go to a doctor."

"I don't have to," she told him, and she sat on the bed. She pat the spot beside her, and she took his hands in hers. "Lightning," she told him slowly, "I'm…I'm pregnant."

* * *

_Bwaaa, surprise! 8D Did that leave you guys hanging? Well, I don't know when I'm going to put up a pregnancy story, because I actually quit Life in the Fast Lane, and now I'm just playing around with you guys. xD Beg me for a sequel, __**Mere**__? I expect you will. :)_


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